
Class 

Book 

GopyrightN 

COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT. 



THE LIFE OF 

MARY, QUEEN OF SCOTS 

By P. C. HEADLEY 



Author of "LIFE OF LAFAYETTE," -LIFE OF 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE," etc., etc. >«>«>« 



WITH NOTES BY 

HENRY KETCHAM 




ILLUSTRATED 



A. L. BURT COMPANY, * J> * * J> 
* J> & * PUBLISHERS, NEW YORK 

wmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmnw»wmmmmKmmwmmmmmmmmmmmmmni%\\\* iwi — — ■ w n mi i mi i i iiniin wi wi— 









r 



THE LIBRARY OF 
CONGRESS, 

Two Copies Receiver! 

JUN G 1903 

Copyngnt Entry 
OLASS GV XXc. No. 

S VI I o 

COPY B. 



Copyright, 1903, 
By A. L. BURT COMPANY. 



• • • 


• * * 


• •• 


* 




• • 






* • < 




• 








► • * 






• • • 


• * 


• • # 


• 










• 


» • • • 


• • 


• « 


• 






m 








• • 


••• 


* 


• • • 


• • 4 


• - 




* 










.*. 


• * 4 


• •• 


* 


• 

• 


■ *• *. 


• 


• . • 




* • 


* 


• 


» 


• 




• • • 


• .• 




• • 








• 


* ••• a 


- •. 


* * 

• 




* •* 


* 1 * 


* 


« 


.* 



PREFACE. 



The universal interest felt in the romantic and 
tragical career of Mary Stuart, seemed to demand an 
American biography, adapted to the popular mind. 
Such a work the one now offered to the public was 
designed to be. The authors mainly consulted and 
quoted are, Mrs. Strickland, Miss Benger, Mignet, 
McCrie, and Hume. Some of these historians, in 
their unqualified and extravagant admiration of the 
Queen of Scots, apologize for every fault, and illus- 
trate glowingly every virtue. Others lean to the de- 
fence of Elizabeth, at the expense of Mary's cause. 

Both extremes have been avoided in purpose, if not 
in fact, in this biography. Less pure and loving than 
Josephine, Mary Stuart was more beautiful, and 
tossed on more tempestuous seas; a weary captive, 
she laid at length her crowned head on the execu- 
tioner's block, affording an historical record, and a 
moral lesson, none can contemplate without benefit 
to the intellect and to the heart. 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER I. 

PAGE. 

Personal and historical interest of Mary's life. — Her ances- 
try — Circumstances of her birth. — Death of James V. — 
Henry VIII. of England solicits the hand of Mary 
Stuart for the young Prince of Wales. — Mary's corona- 
tion. — The treaty with England broken, and an alliance 
with France formed. — War is declared by King Henry. 
— Upon the death of Henry, Somerset becomes Protec- 
tor. — He prosecutes the plans of his late King. — Battle 
of Pinkie. — Mary's removal to Inchmahome. — She sails 
for France. — Her arrival. — Her residence in the Con- 
vent. — She is removed to the Palace. — The Court of 
Henry II. — Mary's education. — Letter to her Mother. — 
Incidents. — Her beauty and accomplishments. — Her 
character at the age of fifteen 13 

CHAPTER II. 

The Dauphin. — Mary's attachment to him. — The treacher* 
ous conditions of marriage. — The magnificent nuptials. 
— The Commissioners' return to Scotland. — Rejoicings 
and developments. — Elizabeth ascends the Throne of 
England. — Her person and character. — Henry of France 
makes her the rival of Mary Stuart. — Changes in the 
French Court.— Death of Henry II.— Results.— The 
Dauphin's joy at his elevation to the Throne. — The con- 
dition of affairs in Scotland. — The Regent's death. — 
Treaty of peace.— Death of Francis II. — Mary's Mourn- 
ing. — Elizabeth's condolence. — Foreign Ambassadors. — 
Catherine's jealousy. — Mary prepares to return to Scofc- 

V 



Vi CONTENTS. 

PAOK 

land. — Letter of the Laird of Lethington. — Negotiations. 
— The Queen's journeyings. — Elizabeth refuses a safe 
conduct. — Mary's departure. — Her adieu 35 

CHAPTER III. 

The voyage. — Mary arrives at Leith. — Popular re joicings. 
— John Knox. — Mary's religious concessions. — Her pub- 
lic entry into Edinburgh. — Interview with John Knox. 
— The compromise. — Lord James Stuart. — Life at Holy- 
rood. — Conspiracies and revolt. — Mary heads an army. 
— Another interview with Knox. — Correspondence with 
Elizabeth. — Proposed meeting of the Sovereigns. — 
Traits of character. — Scenes in the Palace. — Lovers. — 
Lords Dudley and Darnley. — Negotiations. — James Mel- 
vil's mission. — Randolph's visit to St. Andrews. — The 
result. — Murray's conspiracy and revolt. — The wedding 69 

CHAPTER IV. 

The immediate results of Mary's marriage with Darnley. 
— Campaign against Murray. — Mary Stuart is victorious. 
— She writes to Archbishop of Glasgow. — Issues a proc- 
lamation. — She discloses her plans for restoring the 
Catholic faith. — Letter to Philip II., of Spain. — Mary 
marching a third time against Murray, totally routs his 
faction. — He flies to England. — Elizabeth extorts a con- 
fession that she did not encourage the rebellion. — Mary's 
policy. — Rizzio's elevation. — Darnley loses the Queen's 
confidence. — His aspirations. — Darnley plots Rizzio's 
death. — The tragedy. — Mary's feelings and conduct. — 
Mary is a captive. — Darnley relents. — The flight. — 
Mary gathers an army. — Campaigns and victories. — 
Trouble with Darnley increases. — A son is born. — Con- 
gratulations. — Anticipations. — Bothwell and Mary. — 
Excursions. — Darnley's plans. — Yields to Mary. — The 
Christening. — A divorce or murder suggested to Mary. 
— The Conspiracy. — Mary's guilt. — The Issue 106 



CONTENTS. vii 

CHAPTER V. 

FAOS 

Mary's movements after the death of Darnley. — Mary at 
Seton. — Popular feeling. — The Earl of Lennox writes 
Mary. — Letter from Elizabeth. — Mary's intimacy with 
Bothwell. — The mock trial and acquittal of the Earl. — 
His arrogance and designs. — The banquet. — The nobles 
sign the bond praying Mary to marry Bothwell. — His 
rudeness to the Queen. — Her devotion to him. — The 
stratagem to hasten the wedding. — Its success. — Mary's 
return to Edinburgh. — The nuptials. — Domestic dis- 
cord. — Embassies. — Rebellion. — Feeling in the Court of 
Charles IX., of France. — The confederates march 
towards Bothwick Castle — Bothwell escapes. — Mary's 
flight. — The preparations for battle. — Mediation of De 
Croc. — The Queen's extremity. — March to Edinburgh. 
— Her distress. — The warrant for her imprisonment. — 
Mary Stuart in Lochleven Castle 168 

CHAPTER VI. 

New dangers threaten Mary. — Sir James Melvil. — Eliza- 
beth's interposition. — The designs and action of the 
Confederates. — Throckmorton's embassy and instruc- 
tions. — The coronation of James. — The arrival of Mur- 
ray. — His interview with Mary. — Is proclaimed regent. 
— The people approve the measure. — Elizabeth only 
interferes. — Murray triumphs. — Both well's fate. — Hi3 
companions. — Mary in prison. — Attempts to escape. — 
She is at length successful. — Raises an army. — The 
battle. — Mary flies. — Reaches Carlisle. — Writes Eliza- 
beth. — Throws herself on the mercy of the Queen of 
England. — Negotiations. — Elizabeth demands a trial of 
Mary. — Letters to her from the Captive. — Preparations 
for the conference. — The Court at York. — The position 
and error of Mary 201 

CHAPTER VII. 

The Conference. — Letter of Mary Stuart to the King of 
Spain. — The Scotch Commissioners withdraw. — Murray 



viii CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

accuses Mary. — Elizabeth proposes to her Prisoner a 
reply to the evidence. — Mary refuses. — The Queen of 
England writes to Mary. — Mary vindicates her course. 
The conference closes. — Mary Stuart's letter to Eliza- 
beth. — The conflict of royal determinations. — Mary is 
removed to the Castle of Tutbury.— Murray's move- 
ments. — The Duke of Norfolk aspires to the hand of 
Mary. — His designs discovered by Elizabeth. — Mary is 
more closely confined. — The Duke is arrested. — Mary 
writes to Elizabeth. — Insurrection. — Murray is trium- 
phant. — His assassination. — His character. — Letters of 
Mary. — Negotiations with Elizabeth. — Conspiracy. — It 
is detected. — Norfolk's death and character. — Mary's 
condition 253 

CHAPTER VIII. 

Changes in the Regency of Scotland. — Massacre of St. 
Bartholomew. — Its effects on Elizabeth and Mary's 
prospects. — Designs against Mary. — Death of Knox. — 
The total overthrow of her party in Scotland. — Letter 
to Elizabeth. — Lenity of the English Queen. — Corre- 
spondence of Mary Stuart. — Another Conspiracy. — Let- 
ters to Archbishop of Glasgow. — Execution of Morton, 
Regent of Scotland. — A new Conspiracy. — Its failure. 
—Letter of Mary to Elizabeth 305 

CHAPTER IX. 

Mary Stuart is arraigned before the High Court of Jus- 
tice. — Scenes of the Trial. — Elizabeth hesitates to pro- 
nounce the sentence of death, according to the unani- 
mous voice of the Commissioners. — The result of the 
trial is announced to Mary. — Letters to friends. — Her 
last message to Elizabeth. — Interference of Foreign 
Courts. — Unnatural conduct of James VI.— Elizabeth 
signs the warrant of Mary's execution. — Paulet refuses 
to slay his prisoner privately.— The officers of justice 



CONTENTS. ix 

PAGE 

repair to Fotheringay Castle. — The scenes there. — The 
warrant is read to Mary. — Her reply. — Affecting inter- 
views. — Her last night. — Writes her will. — Prospect of 
death 381 

CHAPTER X. 

Mary Stuart's last slumber. — The morning dawns. — The 
interview with her servants. — Her devotions. — The 
summons. — The Captive's death-march. — Her address 
on the scaffold. — Religious scenes. — The Victim pre- 
pares for the sacrifice. — The fatal stroke. — Funeral 
ceremonies. — Effect of Mary's execution on the public 
mind. — Her character 411 



LIFE OF MAEY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 



CHAPTER I. 

The name of Mary, like that of Josephine, awak- 
ens a universal and mournful interest. Born to roy- 
alty, she was the most beautiful and accomplished 
sovereign in the world during a stormy period of the 
Scottish monarchy, and after a captivity of nearly 
half of her life-time, died on the scaffold, in the full 
maturity of her womanhood ; illustrating the muta- 
bility of " all things terrene," and how great a mis- 
fortune may be the heritage of greatness. The pen- 
insula of Northern Britain, which was the mountain- 
ous home of the Gaelic race, after the ceaseless war 
of clans for centuries, and invasions of the Saxons, 
Angles, and Danes, became an independent monarchy 
about the middle of the fourteenth century, when 
David II. ascended the throne founded by his illus- 
trious father, Robert Bruce. An alliance with 
France * modified the severe manners of the Scottish 
nobility, and opened a refuge for the unfortunate 
Mary. Of the four kings who reigned before Mary's 

* This alliance was cemented by the two successive mar- 
riages of James V. of Scotland, father of Mary Queen of Scots, 
with two daughters of Francis I. of France. See the second 
paragraph below. . 

13 



14 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

father took the sceptre, James I. and James III. died 
by the hands of the assassin, and James II. and James 
IV. were slain in battle. James V. succeeded to the 
throne in 1513, then only eighteen months old, under 
the regency of Margaret of England, his mother. 

The biography of Mary Stuart, therefore, has not 
only the interest of tragedy, but is a focal point in 
history, in which the past and present meet, with an 
intensity of life, perhaps, unknown in the annals of 
woman, if we except the rise and decline of the Em- 
press, [Josephine] whose destiny was the dial of Na- 
poleon's fate. 

Mary Stuart was born December 8, 1542 — (ac- 
cording to Miss Benger's Memoirs, December 7,) — at 
the palace of Linlithgow,* situated on the shore of a 
beautiful lake in the heart of Scotland. Her father, 
James V., assumed the reins of government when 
seventeen years old, and at twenty-three, married 
Magdalen, daughter of Francis I. King of France. 
She died two years later, and the King married Mary, 
eldest daughter of Claude de Guise, of Lorraine, and 
widow of Louis of Orleans — an accomplished and 
fascinating woman. There was a sad omen in the 
circumstances attending the birth of Mary. James, 
who had refused to meet Henry the Eighth of Eng- 
land at York, to form a religious union, was caressed 
and flattered by the cardinal and bishops, while the 

* The palace of Linlithgow is beautifully located in the 
town of the same name, a small town numbering to-day a pop- 
ulation of less than 4,000. It is about eighteen miles directly 
west of Edinburgh, and a short distance south of the Firth of 
Forth. The castle, which is very old, is supposed to have 
been founded by Edward I. , that is, Edward, King of the 
Saxons, who died in the year 925. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 15 

increasing spirit of faction spread among his nobles. 
When, therefore, his army came to battle with five 
hundred English, at Solway Moss, they immediately 
fled. His proud and passionate heart was stung with 
mortification, and weakly yielding to the calamity, 
he died a few days after hearing the tidings of Mary's 
birth. Upon the factious desertion of his forces, 
" the King passed out of Holyrood House to Falk- 
land, and there became heavy and dolorous, that he 
never ate nor drank that had digestion ; and so he 
became vehement sick that no man had hope of his 
life : then he sent for certain of his lords, both spirit* 
ual and temporal, to have their counsel, but ere they 
came, he was well nigh strangled to death by ex- 
treme melancholy. By this the post came to the 
King out of Linlithgow, showing him good tidings 
that the Queen was delivered. The King inquired 
whether it was a man-child or a woman ; the messen- 
ger said, ' It is a fair daughter ; ' the King answered, 
Adieu ! farewell : it came with a lass, and it will pass 
with a lass ; and so he recommended himself to the 
mercy of Almighty God, and spake little from that 
time forth, but turned his back to his lords, and his 
face to the wall. At this time Laird Beaton, Cardi- 
nal of Scotland, standing in presence of the King, 
seeing him begin to fail of his strength and natural 
speech, held a throck of paper to his grace, and 
caused him to subscribe the same, wherein the said 
cardinal wrote what pleased him for his own partic- 
ular thinking, to have authority and preeminence in 
the government of the country. But we may know 
hereby the King's legacy was very short, for in this 
manner he departed, as hereafter I shall show you. 



16 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

He turned him upon his back, and looked and looked 
and beheld all his nobles and lords about him, and 
gave a little smile of laughter, then kissed his hand, 
and . offered the same to all his nobles round about 
him, thereafter held up his hands, and yielded his 
spirit to God." 

No sooner was the King buried, than the uncon- 
scious infant, his only daughter, became the object of 
political intrigue and bitter jealousies. The English 
monarch dispatched Sadler, a distinguished negotia- 
tor, to secure the marriage of his son Edward to the 
heiress of Scotland. His design was to consolidate 
the interests of the two kingdoms, and establish abid- 
ing peace. The difficulties to be overcome were man- 
ifold. The nobility were divided. A large party 
was dependent on England, another sympathized with 
France, and a third, the smallest faction, was com- 
posed of genuine patriots — high-minded men, ready 
to defend with their blood, the independence and 
glory of their ancient realm. The clergy were of 
course hostile to the Reformation, and actively fanned 
the flame of discord between England and semi- 
catholic Scotland. Meanwhile, the Earl of Arran, 
through the ascendancy of the nobility, was appointed 
by Parliament Regent of the kingdom. To him Sad- 
ler proposed the alliance. Cardinal Beaton, who had 
aspired to the regency, employed his influence over 
the earl, to prevent the consummation of the politic 
scheme, and obtain a similar arrangement with 
France, a papal power. Although Arran vacillated. 
Henry the VIII. might have succeeded, had not his 
fiery and impetuous nature urged his claims too ve- 
hemently. He demanded the guardianship of Mary 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 17 

till she was of marriageable age, and also asked the 
surrender of several of the most impregnable for- 
tresses in Scotland. This exaction roused popular 
feeling, and Henry was compelled to contract his 
royal ambition, to the simple requisition, that the ju- 
venile Queen be sent to England when she had 
reached her tenth year, and espouse the Prince of 
Wales. On the 1st of July, 1543, a treaty was con- 
cluded between the Regent and King Henry. Dur- 
ing this excitement, spreading over two monarchies, 
and enlisting the diplomacy of lords and kings, Mary 
Stuart was smiling in the dreams of helpless infancy 
at Linlithgow. The loch sparkled beneath the castle 
windows — fountains sent up their showers of dia- 
monds — and the soothing accents of Janet, her nurse, 
were more welcome than the salutations of steel-clad 
barons and earls, who came to look on the child, and 
congratulate the widowed mother. It was well that 
neither parent nor offspring saw the strange contrasts 
and fearful hours of the future. Mary was about 
nine months old, when her coronation was appointed, 
on the 9th of September, 1543, at Stirling Castle — 
less than a score of miles from Linlithgow — where 
this pageant had for many years been witnessed. 

The day was one of universal and thrilling interest- 
in Scotland. The first female sovereign on the 
throne of Bruce, was to be invested with crown and 
scepter. Two rival kingdoms, and the reformers of 
Europe were concerned in the significant event. To 
behold the magnificent scene, came pilgrims from 
highland and lowland, and from adjacent realms, 
winding up the hill sides from the beautiful vales, 
to the rocky summit, frowning with the battlements 
2 



18 MABY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

and towers of Stirling Castle. In the glittering 
train that followed the infant Mary, the Earl of 
Arran bore the crown — Lennox held the scepter. It 
is a singular fact, that the fathers of Darnley and 
Bothwell, the immediate instruments of Mary's trag- 
ical overthrow, were among the attendants, who as- 
sisted in her coronation. Cardinal Beaton placed 
the symbol of regal power upon the brow of the laugh- 
ing babe, around whom factions sternly faced each 
other, and the shouts of the multitude made the old 
fortress rock to its base. The only bewildered and 
unconscious being there, was the heiress to scarcely 
less than a crown of thorns. 

When the imposing ceremonies had passed, and the 
intrigues of aspiring men were renewed, the Earl of 
Arran began to feel the force of a long cherished 
family preference for French alliances, and the artful 
appeals of Cardinal Beaton. Renouncing his Prot- 
estant tendencies, he joined the Catholic party, of 
which the Queen Dowager,* distinguished for her 
dissimulation and diplomacy, was the head. The 
covenant with England was therefore annulled, and 
on the 15th of December, less than six months after 
the treaty with Henry was formed, an alliance with 
Erance was signed at Edinburgh, by the Regent and 
Estates of Scotland, who at the same time ratified, in 
Mary's name, all the treaties which had been made 
between the realms, since the reign of Robert Bruce. 

This was the signal of war, which was declared 
by the enraged monarch of England, and a fleet 
was dispatched to the Frith of Forth. This arma- 
ment left black desolation in its path along the coast, 

* Mary of Guise, 




The Scotch nobility doing homage to the little Queen Mary.— Page 18. 

Mary Queen of Scots. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 19 

and at length threatened with the torch of conflagra- 
tion the noble city of Edinburgh. Upon the south- 
ern frontier hung the English army, ravaging the 
Scottish plains with frequent and lawless incursions. 
It was the folly of a prince, haughtily impatient of 
restraint, to anticipate success by urging young Ed- 
ward's right to Mary's hand, upon the resolute 
Scotch, with the ruthless enterprise of a freebooter. 
The inevitable result was, a deepening hatred of the 
English, and more determined resistance. From 
Prance, auxiliary troops were called, to prosecute 
vigorously the war. The whole country was in a 
state of alarm. Persecution went abroad, with un- 
relenting cruelty. The castle of St. Andrews and 
the Prench galleys received the leaders of the English 
Reformation in Scotland. The virtuous and gifted 
Wishart went to the stake under the religious despot- 
ism of Cardinal Beaton ; and bloody deeds were every- 
where common. The death of Henry VIII. in Jan- 
uary, 1547, left his experiment of uniting the houses 
of the Stuarts and the Tudors, a total failure, and 
the kingdoms of Scotland and England wider asunder 
than at any previous period. 

The Duke of Somerset, uncle of Edward VI., was 
appointed Protector of the kingdom, during the mi- 
nority of the Prince, and carried forward energeti- 
cally the plans of the late King. With an army of 
eighteen thousand men, he appeared on Scottish soil, 
and offered to retire, only on conditions that Mary 
should remain in her native land till old enough to 
marry, and that all negotiations with France cease 
forever. But the spirit of national independence, 
which spurned the humiliation of concession, lived 



20 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

among the highlands, and in the palaces of the di- 
vided nobility. The Earl of Arran gathered a force 
of more than thirty thousand soldiers, and marched 
to the banks of the Eske, four miles from Edinburgh, 
where Somerset had taken his position. The Pro- 
tector then renewed his proposals to evacuate the 
realm, and also repair damages which he had com- 
mitted, upon the same terms as before. The Scotch, 
confident of victory, refused, and after some man- 
euvering, the battle opened. The strife was fierce; 
and when the clashing of spears had died away, and 
the tempest of arrows ceased, there lay ten thousand 
of Arran's host on the field, and the remainder were 
flying hotly before the shouting enemy, whose loss 
was scarcely two hundred men. This decisive con- 
test was called the battle of Pinkie, from the seat of a 
nobleman near the scene of bloody encounter. The 
English, advancing to Leith, finally entrenched 
themselves in the southern part of the country, and re- 
ceived the surrender of the lairds along that frontier. 
Somerset, alarmed by cabals against him at home, 
hastened to London ; and Scotland, improving the de- 
lay, turned anxiously to France, tendering that power 
the guardianship and inheritance of Mary Stuart. 
The Princess had passed the period of these exciting 
events at Stirling Castle, under the care of her gov- 
ernors, Lords Erskine and Livingston, a lovely, 
laughing girl, not six years of age, when the tidings 
of defeat at Pinkie reached the royal fortress. 

Stirling was now in danger of assault, and it 
was determined to remove Mary to the island of Indi- 
ra ahome, in the lake of Monteith.* There was a 
*Mr. Abbott puts Mary's removal to Inchmahome about 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 21 

monastery there, sheltered by its isolation from the 
foraging troops of the English army. It was a ro- 
mantic retreat, devoted to religions purposes mainly, 
and like Calypso's island * to the young captive of 
Stirling Castle. In addition to the curators of her 
person, she was attended by Erskine, the prior of 
Inchmahome, the parson of Balmacellan, the nnrse, 
Janet Sinclair, her governess, Lady Fleming, daugh- 
ter of James Fourth, and over all, Mary of Guise, 
whose clear intellect was stimulated to activity and 
vigilance by maternal affection. To increase the 
pleasures of an only daughter, and give completeness 
to her culture, she formed a social group, or school, 
of four girls, about the same age, and bearing the 
name of the Queen. The first was Mary Beaton, 
niece of the cardinal; the second, Mary Fleming, 
daughter of Lord Fleming; the third, Mary Living- 
ston, and the fourth, Mary Seton. 

Little is known of Mary Stuart's history in Inch- 
mahome. She had begun an acquaintance with the 
French language, and, it is said, with the classics. 
Doubtless, excepting the occasional recitations, mat- 
ins and vespers, these children, six years of age, 
passed their time as others do, amid the pleasant 
scenes of quiet life, in juvenile pastimes, and rambles 
over the green esplanade of their consecrated home. 
In a few months the Marys were removed from this 
tranquil and delightful refuge, to Dumbarton Cas- 
tle; where bold and romantic scenery has furnished 

three years earlier, which does not agree with Mignet and 
others. 

* Ogygea. According to Homer's Odyssey, Ulysses was 
here detained by Calypso for seven years. 



22 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

glowing themes for Scottish song. This transfer, 
which contemplated the interference of the Duke of 
Somerset to prevent the escape of Mary to France, 
was, on that account, of short continuance. Admiral 
Villegognon, with four galleys, was in the Clyde, 
to convey the Queen and her retinue to the dominions 
of Henry II., who had succeeded Francis I. The 
fleet sailed from harbor the 7th of August. The 
parting with her mother w T as affecting; but it is af- 
firmed by biographers, that no murmurs escaped the 
young exile's lips. She wept with a multitude of her 
people, as the royal vessel floated away, and her na- 
tive land began to recede from her radiant eye. 
Scarcely had the fleet passed out into the deep, before 
the English squadron arrived at St. Abb's Head, to 
oppose its departure from the coast of Scotland. 
After a pleasant voyage, the flying Mary, with her 
company, arrived at Brest, August 13th, 1548. She 
was received with great pomp by the King of France, 
and the procession moved on to Paris amid the regal 
splendor of that extravagant period of French his- 
tory. Prison doors were thrown open at the ap- 
proach of the cavalcade, and the captives restored to 
freedom. It was a strangely exciting scene to the 
laughing girl who was the cause of it all. 

After a brief residence in the palace of St. Ger- 
main, surrounded with courtly pageantry, Mary was 
removed to a convent, to complete her education. 
She was subjected to strict rules of discipline, and 
regularly accustomed to join the nuns in their devo- 
tional exercises, and ascetic humiliations : and so 
readily did she comply with whatever was required 
by her spiritual directors, that they began to cherish 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 23 

ambitious hopes of their royal pupil, and to boast 
that she had a religious vocation. This persuasion 
was too agreeable to self-love and to enthusiasm, to 
be confined to their own community; the nuns offi- 
ciously proclaimed their conviction that the little 
Mary Stuart would be a saint on earth : and with 
such zeal was the rumor propagated, that it even 
reached the King, who had just returned from Bou- 
logne, and who, not relishing the suggestion, imme- 
diately demanded that his daughter-in-law elect 
should be transferred to apartments in the palace, 
where she could no longer be accessible to sainted 
maids, or exposed to their pious seductions. Accord- 
ing to her learned biographer," the execution of this 
mandate drew from Mary more tears than she had 
shed on leaving Scotland. Whether the endearingman- 
ners of the community had so strongly engaged her af- 
fections, or that, in the tranquillity of her retreat, so 
congenial to the simple wishes of childhood, the sen- 
sibilities of her nature had prematurely expanded, 
we are assured not only that she evinced deep sorrow 
at this change of residence, but that she eagerly em- 
braced every permission that was offered, of revisit- 
ing the sisters of the community, and long after em- 
ployed her needle in embroidering an altar-piece for 
the church of their convent. f In the palace, as be- 
fore, Mary was attended by her two scholastic precep- 
tors, her governess, the Lady Fleming, and her cura- 
tor, Reid, Bishop of Orkney, who had succeeded Lord 
Livingston in that important trust. Her Marys con- 
tinued to be her constant companions ; and as she dis- 

* Conseus in Jebb. 
t Ibid. 



24 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

covered uncommon aptitude to application, nothing 
was omitted to stimulate her exertions or increase her 
diligence. Exclusive of the Latin and French, she 
began also to study the Italian language; but music 
was rarely cultivated by the great as a science, and 
it was not till a later period that she learnt to play 
on the virginals and clavichords.* 

The education of Mary was precisely such as was 
given to the daughters of France, with certain sup- 
plementary literary advantages, for which she ap- 
pears to have been exclusively indebted to the super- 
intendence of her uncle, Cardinal Lorraine. " In the 
education of a royal personage, mental cultivation, 
however highly valued, was of subordinate impor- 
tance to the acquisition of those external accomplish- 
ments, necessary to that public exhibition which is 
unavoidably imposed on the station of a sovereign. 
For those who live exposed to the public gaze, alter- 
nately the objects of criticism and admiration, to be 
wanting in a dignified carriage, or gracious de- 
meanor ; to be untasteful in dress, of ungraceful 
speech, or' shy, repulsive manners, has ever been an 
irreparable defect, for which neither moral nor intel- 
lectual qualities could compensate to their possessor. 
To guaranty the royal pupils from this misfortune, 
appears to have been a primary object with the 
French teacher : and whilst the prince was taught to 
ride, to fence, and to perform all the athletic exer- 
cises suited to his sex and rank, he was at the same 
time habituated to speak in public, to recite dis- 
courses, which he, perhaps, scarcely understood, and 

* Both these instruments, of crude and primitive construc- 
tion, were predecessors of the piano. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 25 

to address, in a tone of confidence and friendship, 
those to whose persons and character he was almost a 
stranger." 

The influences which were to attend Mary, appear 
in a brief and vivid description of royalty. This 
court was then the most magnificent, the most elegant, 
the most joyous, and, we must add, the most lax in 
Europe. Still retaining certain military customs of 
the middle ages, and at the same time conforming to 
the intellectual usages of the time of the renaissance, 
it was half-chivalric and half-literary, mingling tour- 
naments with studies, hunting with erudition, mental 
achievements with bodily exercises, the ancient and 
rough games of skill and strength with the novel and 
delicate pleasures of the arts. Nothing could equal 
the splendor and vivacity which Francis I. had intro- 
troduced into his court, by attracting thither all the 
principal nobility of France, by educating as pages 
therein young gentlemen of all the provinces, by 
adorning it with nearly two hundred ladies belonging 
to the greatest families in the kingdom, and by estab- 
lishing it sometimes in the splendid palaces of Fon- 
taineblaeu and St. Germain, which he had either built 
or beautified, on the banks of the Seine, and some- 
times in the spacious castles of Blois and Amboise, 
which his predecessors had inhabited, on the banks of 
the Loire. A careful imitator of his father's example, 
Henry II. kept up the same magnificence at his court, 
which was presided over with as much grace as ac- 
tivity by the subtle Italian, Catherine de Medici, 
whose character had been formed by Francis I., who 
had admitted her into the little circle of his favorite 
ladies, with whom he used to hunt the stag, and fre- 



26 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

quently sport in his pleasure-houses ! The men were 
constantly in the company of the women ; the Queen 
and her ladies were present at all the games and 
amusements of Henry II. and his gentlemen, and ac- 
companied them in the chase. The King, on his 
part, together with the noblemen of his retinue, used 
to pass several hours every morning and evening in 
the apartments of Catherine de Medici. " There," 
says Brantome, " there was a host of human god- 
desses, some more beautiful than others; every lord 
and gentleman conversed with her he loved best ; 
whilst the King talked to the Queen, his sister, the 
dauphiness, (Mary Stuart,) and the princesses, to- 
gether with those lords and princes who were seated 
nearest him." As the kings themselves had avowed 
mistresses, they were desirous that their subjects 
should follow their example, " and if they did not do 
so," says Brantome, " they considered them cox- 
combs and fools." 

Mary's education had, therefore, all the elaborate 
culture and glaring faults incident to royal munifi- 
cence, Romish instructors, and a corrupt court. 
Pride of lineage, and self-respect that would repel a 
stain upon hereditary honors, sooner than an assault 
upon personal virtue, were conspicuous in the splen- 
did reign of Henry the Second. There was pagean- 
try reflecting the ancestral glory of past ages, and a 
polished surface-dressing of society, which concealed 
a melancholy want of religious tone and purity. In- 
stead of the power of Puritan faith, the young Queen 
embraced ardently the dogmas of persecuting Rome. 
These early influences upon her character were after- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 27 

wards developed in acts which partially eclipsed her 
amiable qualities and brilliant genius. 

When Mary was nearly eight years old, her mother, 
Queen Dowager of Scotland, reached Rouen. The 
arrangements for this anticipated visit were expen- 
sive and imposing. After the dazzling reception 
given by the King and his attendants, Mary of Guise 
was conducted to the apartments of Mary Stuart. 
The sight of the beautiful girl, whose deportment had 
the refined dignity of queenly womanhood, was like a 
rapturous vision to the ambitious mother. Tears of 
joy fell fast, and smiles of maternal affection played 
brightly round her tremulous lips. But the Princess 
stood in the conscious greatness of her destiny, and 
with the subsiding ecstacy of her mother, quietly de- 
manded, " whether any feuds continued to subsist in 
the noble families of Scotland ; at the same time in- 
quiring by name for those who had evinced most at- 
tachment to the ancient faith. She then proceeded 
to ask ; with all the usual expressions of royal benev- 
olence, " if the English still harassed her dear native 
country; whether divine worship had been preserved 
in uncontaminated purity ; whether the prelates and 
priests attended to their respective duties, expressing 
detestation for all who had forsaken the faith of their 
fathers." This premature display of powers, be- 
trayed both her docility toward her teachers, and the 
artificial training of the palace and the times. For 
two days, festal scenes were witnessed in the ancient 
town of Rouen. 

" The only classical part of the show, was a trium- 
phal arch, under which passed a procession, at once 
superb and grotesque. The first object was a chariot, 



28 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

drawn by a unicorn, after which came two elephants, 
or rather horses so disguised as to represent them, 
bearing on their backs two litters, in which were 
seated ladies, of whom a transient glimpse was taken 
from the latticed apertures. Religion followed in 
her triumphal car, bearing in her arms the appro- 
priate symbol of a church. Next to these walked a 
man, carrying the image of the Virgin and the child 
Jesus. Then followed the car of Fortune, in which 
rode another man, young and handsome, as the repre- 
sentative of Henry the Second, behind whom stalked 
a boy, to personate the Dauphin. To crown the 
whole, Neptune glided along with Amphitrite, at- 
tended by tritons and sea monsters." 

This display was followed by a public entry into 
Paris. For a year, Mary enjoyed the society of her 
mother, surrounded with scenes of festivity and all 
the pleasures of a court, of which she was the favor- 
ite. It is not strange that her early love grew strong 
for France, and that in after life, she turned to mem- 
ory's record of those departed joys, with tears. But 
the Queen Dowager had more ambitious aims to se- 
cure before leaving the palace of Henry, than the so- 
ciety of her daughter and the brilliant succession of 
entertainments w T hich she enjoyed. Her aspiring 
heart had been long fixed on attaining the regency of 
Scotland, which now she saw within her grasp. It 
was only necessary to obtain the assent of the King to 
the conditions, upon which the Earl of Arran might 
be induced to resign his office in her behalf. With 
this pledge, she prepared to leave her native land. 
Her widowed mother, Antoinette of Bourbon, was 
wasting away at Joinville, under the rayless gloom of 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 39 

cherished mourning for the dead, and self-inflicted 
mortifications, heightened by the sympathy she ex- 
torted from all around her. To this mother, sitting 
in the shadow of death, a weeping monument of in- 
exorable despair, Mary of Guise, with filial respect, 
made a toilsome journey. Entering the ample apart- 
ments of the maternal mansion, which were hung in 
black, she communed for the last time with a spirit, 
beneath whose surface, calm with habitual grief, 
burned intensely a persecuting intolerance towards 
heretics. From the tomb of the living she hastened 
again to Eontainebleau, to bid adieu to Mary Stuart ; 
and breaking away from the ties of family and coun- 
try embarked for England, to consummate her am- 
bitious plans. 

The parting look was her last upon Mary ; they met. 
no more this side the vale of eternal scenes. The ed- 
ucation of the young Princess was continued with 
dazzling progress. Living in the atmosphere of liter- 
ature, where the King's daughters were linguists, and 
the arts a theme of constant criticism, her genius out- 
shone the more mature, lending its fascination to her 
unrivaled beauty of person. At ten years of age, she 
wrote the following letter to the Queen Dowager, con- 
cerning the affairs of Scotland, with a practical sense 
and precision which astonished even her admirers, as 
an exhibition of precocious talents and culture, both 
in science and belles-lettres, and in the policy of ambi- 
tious sovereigns : * 

" 1552. 

" Madame — I have received the letters which you 

* This letter, of course, was written in French, and is here 
given in translation. 



30 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

have been pleased to write me by Aztus Asquin, by 
which I have learnt the pleasure you have felt that I 
have kept secret the things which it pleased you to 
send to me. I can assure you, madame, that nothing 
that comes from you shall be known by me (ne sera 
sceu par moy) I humbly beg you to be- 
lieve that I shall not fail to obey you in everything in 
which you are pleased to command me, and to think 
that the chief wish I have in the world is to be obe- 
dient and agreeable to you, doing you every possible 
service, as I am bound. I have seen, by your letters, 
that you beg me to approve the marriage-gift of the 
late M. Asquin to his son, who is here. I humbly en- 
treat you never to give me anything but your com- 
mands, as to your very humble and very obedient 
daughter and servant, for otherwise I shall not think 
I have the happiness of being in your good graces. 
As for my master, I will do as you have told me. I 
have shown the letters you have been pleased to write 
to me to my uncle, Monsieur de Guise, thinking that 
you would wish it, though, after the directions you 
have given me, I should not have shown them but that 
I was afraid I could not arrange things without his 
help. I write two other letters with my own hand ; 
the one concerning Mde. de Parroys, and the other 
for my master, that you may be able to show that of 
my said master without this, so that they may not 
think that you have told me anything about it. 
. . I should have written to you in cipher, but my 
secretary has told me that it was not necessary, and 
that he was writing to you in cipher. I write also to 
my natural brother, (frere bastard,) according to the 
advice of my uncle, M. de Guise. The said letters 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 31 

are open, in order that you may deliver them if you 
approve of them." 

Music, poetry, drawing, the exciting pleasures of 
the chase, aquatic excursions, and social scenes, were 
crowded into the premature experience of Mary. On 
one occasion, riding at full speed in pursuit of a 
stag, attended by a party of the nobility, her dress 
caught in the boughs of a tree, and in a moment she 
was unhorsed, and lying upon the turf. The com- 
pany passed on without seeing her. Her coolness 
was admirable ; she made no outcry, and when her 
steed was brought back, she arranged her disheveled 
hair, and remounting, again dashed forward in the 
chase. 

The following letter, written about this time, when 
Mary was twelve years old, and addressed to her 
mother, gives a glimpse of the careful guardianship 
with which she was environed, and of her filial tem- 
per: 

" Madame — I have been well pleased to find so 
good an opportunity to write you, as I still remain 
here in this place of Mendon, with my grandmother, 
where the King and the Queen are to come Thursday 
next, to the baptism of my little cousin. My uncle, 
the cardinal, has informed me that all the lords of my 
kingdom are well disposed to obey you, and to do for 
you, as well as for myself, whatever you may please 
to command them, for which I am very grateful, and 
well pleased, desiring very much to hear your news, 
and awaiting which, I present my very humble com- 
pliments to your good grace — praying God to give 



32 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

you, madame, happiness and long life, I am your very 
humble and very obedient daughter Mary. Madame, 
once more I thank you." 

A year later she composed a Latin speech, and re- 
cited it in the presence of the King, the Queen, and 
the entire court, assembled in the hall of the Louvre. 
The Cardinal of Lorraine wrote to her mother in the 
following strain of eulogy : 

" Your daughter has so increased, and indeed in- 
creases daily in height, goodness, beauty, wisdom, and 
virtues, that she is as perfect and accomplished in all 
things honest and virtuous as it is possible for her to 
be; and there is no one like her to be found in this 
kingdom, either among noble ladies or others, of 
whatever low or mean condition and quality they may 
be: and I am constrained to tell you, madame, that 
the King takes such a liking to her, that he often 
passes his time in chatting with her for the space of 
an hour; and she knows quite well how to entertain 
him with good and wise conversation, as if she were 
a woman twenty-five years of age." 

The homage paid to Mary's beauty and graceful 
mien was universal. 

Upon a grand religious occasion, when a magnifi- 
cent procession moved at evening, each lady bearing 
aloft in her right hand a lighted torch, and in her 
left waving a palm of victory, it is recorded that a 
woman, with superstitious wonder, approached Mary, 
while her beaming face reflected the brightness of her 
beacon, and exclaimed, " Are you not indeed an an- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 33 

gel ? " Mary also excelled in the art of embroidery, 
then a popular and essential part of female educa- 
tion, and which she cultivated, together with the in- 
vention of heraldic and other devices, under the eye 
of the dignified, refined and imperious Catherine, 
the Queen of France. It is related by Cona?us, that 
while Mary Stuart was passing the limited hours, 
with the King's daughters, in the royal apartment, 
she " had neither eye nor ear but for her elect step- 
mother; she eagerly treasured every word that fell 
from her lips, watched her looks, imitated her mo- 
tions, and evidently was anxious to form herself upon 
the accomplished model before her." The same 
writer adds, that when Catherine inquired of the 
princess, why she preferred her society to the com- 
panionship of youthful persons, the womanly maiden 
replied, " that with them she might, indeed, enjoy 
much, but could learn nothing; whilst in her Majes- 
ty's wisdom and affability she found an example and 
a guide for her future life." Catherine smiled at the 
reply, as an idle compliment. She naturally felt her 
maternal pride wounded by the transcendent attrac- 
tions of her protegee in contrast with her own daugh- 
ters, and fearing future rivalry in the claim to royal 
honors, soon betrayed a secret enmity towards the un- 
offending Mary. 

Contemplating the extraordinary endowments of 
the fair exile, with her subsequent history before the 
mind, who can suppress a rising sadness in view of 
the beauteous victim, having all of life that was joy- 
ous, and kept like a pagan offering in the temple of 
sacrifice, caressed and crowned with garlands, for the 
altar. 



34 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

And it cannot be denied that Mary Stuart's heart 
and conscience were continually in danger ; if neither 
were stained by her friendships and contacts with the 
accomplished and unprincipled nobility, she were a 
greater marvel than the Hebrew amid the convivial 
population of the cities, from which he fled to escape 
the retributive storm. Her guardian uncle, Car- 
dinal of Lorraine, stamped upon her religious charac- 
ter his own hostility to John Knox and the spirit of 
reform, which must have modified those sensibilities 
that are refined by a pure Christianity. Thus, at the 
age of fifteen, the fairest princess of Europe is a 
fascinating, flattered, and educated maiden ; virtuous, 
but her gentle spirit expanding in a tainted air ; con- 
scientious in religious duties, but according to the 
unsoftened dogmas of an ancient and persecuting 
faith. Realms and their sovereigns are deeply in- 
terested in the destiny of the exiled daughter of the 
House of Stuart — a destiny which at this early age 
reached an exciting and decisive turn, in its gay and 
onward march to the abyss of human woe. 



CHAPTER II. 

Francis, son of Henry II. and Catherine de Med- 
ici, was born at Fontainebleau, January 19, 1544; 
and was, therefore, about a year younger than Mary 
Stuart, by whom, from early childhood, he had been 
regarded as her future husband. This was the ar- 
rangement of royal policy ; and the youthful heirs to 
sovereignty had, during the pastimes of childhood 
within the same palace, formed a mutual aifection. 
The Dauphin * was constitutionally and mentally 
weak, yet amiable, and when aroused, energetic. His 
personal appearance was plain, and his disposition ex- 
tremely retiring. Shrinking with timid sensibility 
from responsibilities, he was neither formed to com- 
mand, nor win the popular homage. Although Mary 
was in all respects his superior, eclipsing by the 
splendor of her talents, his ordinary endowments, 
and fond of learning as he was of intellectual indo- 
lence, she evidently loved him for his virtuous habits 
and enthusiastic devotion to her, whose smile and 
pleasant words would always kindle into animation, 
the habitual repose of his yet juvenile features. But 
had she even felt a repugnance to the alliance, so 

* So called from the ancient province of Dauphiny, a prince 
of which, upon the loss of his only son, bequeathed his large 
estates to the King, on condition that the eldest son of the 
reigning monarch of France should thereafter bear the title 
of Dauphin. 

35 



36 MAHY QUEEN OF SCOTS 

completely was she under the influence of her uncles, 
Duke of Guise, who was at the head of military af- 
fairs, and Cardinal of Lorraine, who controlled the 
clergy and finances, that her real sentiments would 
not have been revealed by lips which were carefully 
trained to the concealment of kingly designs and mo- 
tives. 

Whatever the depth of Mary's love, the nuptials 
were appointed to be celebrated on Sunday, April 
24th, 1558. Catherine opposed the marriage as pre- 
mature, while the secret reason was the glory of the 
princess, in conflict with the hopes of her own as- 
piring family. The Protestants of Scotland, also, 
desired to defeat a union which threatened the dawn- 
ing reformation with powerful restraint, if not tem- 
porary overthrow. So bitter was the animosity, that, 
according to historical anecdote, Stewart, an archer 
in King Henry's guard, attempted to poison Mary, 
but was detected and beheaded. There were other 
factions at home and abroad, hostile to the approach- 
ing marriage. All these sources of solicitude stimu- 
lated Henry to consummate the favorite purpose of 
his heart. 

In the meantime, on the 31st of October, 1557, 
Henry wrote to the parliament of Scotland, inviting 
them to send a deputation to Paris, and sanction the 
marriage in the name of their kingdom, and attend 
the ceremonies of the wedding. December 14th, 
Parliament met, and, assured by the regent's plaus- 
ible representation, appointed nine commissioners to 
fulfill the royal request. These were, Archbishop of 
Glasgow ; the Bishops of Ross and Orkney ; the Earls 
of Eothes and Cassillis; and Lords James Stuart, 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 37 

James Fleming, George Seaton and John Erskine of 
Dun. They were instructed to secure as an indis- 
pensable condition of approval, from both the Queen 
and the Dauphin, " a promise to preserve the integ- 
rity of the kingdom, and observe its ancient laws and 
liberties." 

We now have to record a treacherous act, matured 
and completed by a corrupt court, but in which Mary 
was a party by consent. She was only a maiden, 
truly, but a tender conscience and resolute will would 
have dared, for honor's sake, to offend unscrupulous 
aspirants for crowns. On the 4th of April, Mary 
signed, at Fontainebleau, two secret acts of sweeping 
and dangerous import. The first of these acts was a 
full and free donation of Scotland to the Kings of 
France, in consideration of the services which those 
monarchs had at all times rendered to Scotland, by 
defending her against the English, her ancient and 
inveterate enemies, and especially for the assistance 
which she had received from King Henry II., who 
had maintained her independence at his own expense 
during the minority of her Queen. " The second act 
seemed framed merely to meet the case of the non- 
execution of the first, in which she also conveyed to 
him any claims which might accrue to her upon Eng- 
land and Ireland. The usufruct of the kingdom of 
Scotland was granted to the King of France, until 
he should have been repaid the sums which he had 
expended in her defence. Estimating these sums at 
a million of pieces of eight, which Scotland, in her 
existing state of poverty, could not restore, Mary 
Stuart ordained that the King of France should have 
the enjoyment of her kingdom until they were en- 



38 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

tirely liquidated. With the consent of her uncles, 
the Duke of Guise and the Cardinal of Lorraine, 
whose opinion she had consulted on the matter, she 
thus placed Scotland in pledge for debts which Scot- 
land had never accepted.' 7 

April 19th, the youthful Queen entered into the 
most solemn engagements with the commissioners^ 
directly in opposition to her private pledges. 

" The eldest son sprung of this marriage was to be 
King of France, and, if daughters only were born, 
the eldest of them was to become Queen of Scotland, 
to receive four hundred thousand crowns as a daugh- 
ter of France, and not to marry without the consent 
of both the estates of Scotland and the King of 
France; the Dauphin was to assume the title and 
arms of King of Scotland, and if he died after his 
accession to the throne of France, the Queen, his 
widow, was to receive a jointure of six hundred thou- 
sand livres." 

Without the prospect of ultimate benefit to Henry, 
the conflicting articles of agreement were a sad les- 
son for Mary in the art of royal treachery. The 
glow of virtuous feeling must lose intensity by such 
contact and yielding, and the lovely instrument of 
ambitious princes did not escape the inevitable result. 
This was the day of her betrotliment, and in con- 
formity with custom, it was performed in the great 
hall of the Louvre ; the scene was private, and closed 
with a brilliant ball. Paris was now alive with prep- 
aration for the public celebration of the nuptials. 

The workmen were busy with the church of Notre 
Dame, erecting a covered gallery to connect with the 
Episcopal palace of the Bishop, affording to the spec- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 39 

tators through its long vista, a view of the royal pro- 
cession when it entered. It was lined with purple 
velvet, and embossed with rich and elaborate orna- 
ments, and opened at the cathedral into an amphi- 
theater of grand outline and finished proportions. 
The Sabbath dawned, and the throngs of excited peo- 
ple were hastening towards the ample area, to witness 
the dazzling pageant, which was called in honor of the 
event celebrated, the Triumph. A royal canopy, 
strown with the fleurs de lis, which were symbols of 
reverence and marriage, hung over the entrance of 
Notre Dame, around which stood the papal legate, 
archbishops and prelates, in their sacerdotal robes. 
Military bands, with the music of Swiss melodies, 
joined the imposing group of prelatical magnates. 

After these came the Duke of Guise, as grand mas- 
ter of the King's household, who, having with his 
accustomed dignity, saluted the Bishop of Paris, Car- 
dinal Eustathius du Bellay, and the princes of the 
blood, turned towards the assembled crowd, and per- 
ceiving that they were impeded in their view, waved 
his hand, and signified to the grandees that they 
should retire, for the accommodation of the lower 
orders, whilst he himself marshaled the procession, 
which was heralded by music. The performers wore 
an uniform of yellow and red ; but endless was the 
variety of their harmonious strains, in which the 
trumpet and the lute, the bass-viol and the flageolet, 
the violin and hautboy, all intermingled in harmo- 
nious concert : immediately after followed the two 
hundred gentlemen attached to the King's person ; 
next, the princes of the blood, with their immediate 
attendants; bishops and abbots, before whom were 



40 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

borne their crosiers and mitres, the ensigns of their 
dignity; a cluster of high-capped cardinals, among 
whom were conspicuous John of Bourbon, Charles of 
Lorraine, and John of Guise ; lastly, came the Pope's 
legate, before whom was borne a cross of massive 
gold ; after these marched the Dauphin Francis, con- 
ducted by the King of Navarre. Although his fee- 
ble and ill-proportioned figure was plainly contrasted 
with the tall martial form of Anthony of Bourbon, 
the impression was somewhat relieved by the presence 
of his two younger brothers, the Dukes of Orleans 
and Angouleme. Far different was the sensation 
created by the appearance of his fair bride, affection- 
ately supported by her father-in-law, the King of 
France and who was also attended by her youthful 
kinsman, the Duke of Lorraine: though she had not 
completed her sixteenth year, her stature rose con- 
siderably above the female standard; but so perfect 
was the symmetry of her form, and so graceful were 
her movements, that even this lofty height but gave 
to her person an air of mingled dignity and elegance, 
that added to her attractions. On this day, Bran- 
tome describes her, as " more beautiful and charming 
than a celestial goddess ; for as every eye dwelt with 
rapture on her face, every voice echoed her praise; 
whilst, universally, in the court and city it was re- 
echoed, happy, thrice happy, the prince who should 
call her his, even though she should have had neither 
crown nor sceptre to bestow ! " Unlike Brantome, 
the frigid chronicler, instead of expatiating on 
Mary's charms, descants with much energy on her 
superb attire : " The robe, white as the lily with 
which it was embroidered, but so prodigally rich and 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 41 

gorgeous, glittering with diamonds and silver, as to be 
too dazzling for words to describe." Her sweeping 
train was borne by two young girls, whom grace and 
beauty fitted for the office ; her neck was encircled 
with a diamond carcanet, from which was suspended 
a ring of inestimable value ; on her head she wore a 
golden coronet, encircled with precious stones, in 
which the diamond, the ruby, and the emerald con- 
tended for magnificence, and in the centre of the 
coronet shone a carbuncle valued at five hundred 
crowns. Although it was impossible but that such 
habiliments should have attracted the vulgar eye, we 
may be permitted to suspect, that they rather dis- 
guised than embellished a youthful beauty; nor is it 
an equivocal proof of Mary's superior grace, that 
under all this pomp and state, she preserved her ac- 
customed elegance and unembarrassed movements. 
Behind the young Queen (not without secret envy) 
walked Catherine de Medicis, with the Prince de 
Conde; after whom followed, in due gradation, Ma- 
dame Marguerite, the Queen of Navarre, and an al- 
most interminable train of ladies. 

When the procession had reached the great door of 
the church, the King drew from his finger a ring, 
which he gave to the Archbishop of Rouen, who, hav- 
ing placed it on the young Queen's finger, pro- 
nounced the nuptial benediction. Mutual congratu- 
lations followed, and Mary gracefully saluted her 
husband by the title of King of Scots. The Scottish 
deputies, whom the chronicler does not once deign 
to mention, followed her example ; after which, the 
Archbishop of Paris delivered a suitable discourse, 
which probably, received little attention. In the 



42 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

mean time, the Duke of Guise had succeeded in his 
efforts to induce the nobles to open a vista to the 
people, who stood clustering in the streets, at the 
windows, on turrets, and scaffoldings, to catch a 
glimpse of the imposing spectacle; but not even his 
vigilance and activity were adequate to the task of 
preserving order and decorum among the motley 
crowd; and when, according to custom, the heralds, 
having proclaimed largess, in the name of the King 
and Queen of Scots, began to shower money on the 
people : " Then," says the chronicler, " you might 
have witnessed the tumult and confusion of the multi- 
tude ; some, in their avidity, precipitating themselves 
on their companions, others fainting, whilst many 
were stript of hats, cloaks, or even skirts ; so terrible 
was the conflict, that at length even the populace, in 
dismay unutterable, implored the heralds to desist 
from throwing among them the golden bait of dis- 
cord." 

The bridal procession advanced to the choir, or 
main space of the edifice, under the royal canopy, 
and celebrated mass. This was followed by a costly 
collation in the bishop's palace, and then a ball. At 
five o'clock in the evening the royal train returned to 
their palace. The two Queens of France sat together 
in a litter escorted by cardinals ; Henry and Francis 
rode on horseback, and after them on richly capari- 
soned steeds came the ladies of princely rank. The 
Duke of Guise presided over the ceremonies of the 
evening entertainment. The King's band of a hundred 
men, poured through the ample apartment, strains of 
ravishing music. While the guests were becoming 
animated with the prospective pleasures, twelve arti-> 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 43 

ficial horses, mantled in golden cloth, entered with 
the motion of life, and bestrode by sons of the nobil- 
ity. Next came a company of pilgrims, each recit- 
ing a poem; then were ushered into the hall six di- 
minutive galleys, " covered like Cleopatra's barge, 
with cloth of gold and crimson velvet ; so skillfully 
contrived as to appear to glide through the waves, 
sometimes rolling, sometimes tacking, then veering, 
as if agitated by a sudden swell of the tide till the del- 
icate silken sails were cracked asunder." Upon the 
deck of each sat a cavalier, who, while the miniature 
navy moved along, in turn sprang to land, and seized 
a fair lady, bearing her to a vacant chair ready for 
her reception. After these splendid panoramic scenes 
there was a grand tournament, in which Francis, 
from physical debility, was forbidden to break a 
lance. For fifteen days this extravagant and re- 
splendent festivity continued. 

To the parliament of this nation, the commission- 
ers returned, believing their instructions faithfully 
fulfilled ; and December following the marriage of 
Mary, their mission and its results were ratified by 
that bodv, and the matrimonial crown was bestowed 
upon Francis. It was also ordered that future acts 
be published in the name of " Francis and Mary, 
King and Queen of Scotland, Dauphin and Dauphi- 
ness of Vienne." 

The youthful sovereigns retired to a country resi- 
dence near Paris, while the highlands of Scotland 
echoed back the shouts, and shone with the illumina- 
tions of popular rejoicing, as the tidings of the mar- 
riage spread. But these soon died away before the 



44 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

practical developments that succeeded the surface ex- 
citement of a kingdom. 

The Queen Dowager having secured her object, be- 
gan to show without disguise her French affinities, in 
official appointments and treating carelessly those 
whose influence she had before feared. This palpa- 
ble change in the exercise of her sovereignty, gave a 
decisive blow to the supremacy of foreign views; it 
broke the spell of quiet control which had stolen over 
the people from the court of France. Another cause 
of threatening disquietude was the conflict of Calvin- 
ism with prelacy. The Queen of Navarre, and other 
distinguished subjects of Henry, warmly espoused 
the cause of reform, sustained as it was by intellect, 
intelligence, and purity of both worship and life. In 
Scotland, the Earl of Arran sympathised with the re- 
formers. Just as this crisis was reached, Mary Tudor 
of England died, and the Protestant Elizabeth as- 
cended the throne, restoring immediately, on the 
second downfall of popery, the faith of her father, 
Henry VIIL, and of her brother, Edward VI. As 
soon as this new order of things was established, in- 
troduced November, 1558, Mary Stuart's relation to 
England assumed an aspect widely different from 
that occupied before, and modified essentially the con- 
dition of factions in her native realm. Elizabeth 
was declared by the French court, in accordance with 
the Catholic sentiment, illegitimate ; and Mary, as a 
direct descendant of Henry VII., through Margaret 
Tudor, was deemed heir to the crown. The King of 
France, with a strange infatuation, ordered the arms 
of England to be quartered on the regal escutcheon 
with those of Scotland, proclaiming by the act, the 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 45 

assumed right and the aspiration to the sceptre of 
England, in behalf of the Dauphin and Dauphiness. 
These disclosures naturally aroused the fiery spirit of 
the English Queen, who saw in Mary her rival to 
royalty and glory. Under the bloody reign of her 
sister, she had lived in comparative seclusion, dissem- 
bling the religious faith and strong feelings, which 
were cherished like subterranean fires, beneath an 
exterior haughtily calm, and delusively smiling. 
Giovanni Michele, the Venetian ambassador, de- 
scribes her person, accomplishments, and hints at her 
character, in his records of the times, when Elizabeth 
was twenty-three years of age : 

" She is no less remarkable in body than in mind, 
although her features are rather agreeable than beau- 
tiful. She is tall in person and well-made ; her com- 
plexion is brilliant though rather dark. She has fine 
eyes ; but above all, a splendid hand, which she is very 
fond of showing. She possesses great tact and abil- 
ity, as she has abundantly proved by the wise way in 
which she has conducted herself in the midst of the 
suspicions of which she was the object, and of the 
perils which surrounded her. She surpasses the 
Queen, her sister, in her knowledge of languages. 
Besides English, Spanish, French, Italian, and Latin, 
which she knows as well as her sister, she has no slight 
acquaintance with Greek. She is haughty and high- 
spirited. Although born of a mother beheaded for 
adultery, she esteems herself no less highly than the 
Queen, her sister, and considers herself equally legiti- 
mate. It is said that she is very much like the King, 
her father, to whom she was always very dear on that 
account, and who had her as well educated as the 



46 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

Queen, and made an equal provision for them both in 
his will." 

Elizabeth was clearly Mary Stuart's superior in 
vigorous intellect, masculine judgment, and general 
force of character ; while she was her equal, if not in 
beauty, in mental culture and the fascination of a 
lively imagination. Though less gentle and winning 
than her rival, she was endowed with the qualities of 
a great and successful Queen. Surrounding herself 
with a cabinet of strong minds and devoted hearts, 
she swayed them and her subjects with a will which 
disdained counsel, only as an expression of views 
which might strengthen, without controlling her own 
unbiased decisions. She declared this independence 
with self-glorying, when she said, " that she would let 
the world know that there was in England a woman 
who acted like a man, and who was awed neither by a 
constable of Montmorency, like the King of France, 
nor by a bishop of Anas, like the King of Spain." 
The reformers and restive parties of Scotland found 
a friend in the English sovereign, and these events 
ripened the royal collision; when changes in France 
gave a new form and interest to the struggle for do- 
minion. 

The 26th of June, 1559, was appointed for the es- 
pousals of Elizabeth, the eldest daughter of Henry, 
to Philip of Spain. The order of arrangements re- 
sembled that of Mary's marriage. The princess 
passed the night of the 24th in the bishop's palace, 
and was led to the altar of jSTotre Dame through a 
covered gallery, attended with the lavish display of 
royal treasures, which never failed, whether the poor 
and toiling masses were fed, or whether they were 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 47 

lifting their piteous cry for bread. The bride ap- 
peared in robes of golden texture, studded with dia- 
monds, her brow resplendent with a crown of jewels, 
beneath which beamed her dark and expressive eyes, 
while the flush of excitement betrayed a sensitive na- 
ture, oppressed with the burden of queenly honors. 
This gorgeous scene was succeeded by banquets and 
balls, with the usual pageant of a grand tournament. 

The Place Antoine was selected for the field of con- 
test. 

An ample theatre was erected for the spectators, 
and crowded with noble and anxious beholders. Never 
before was gathered to such an entertainment so great 
an assemblage of foreign princes, ambassadors, and 
generals. The national costumes and the insignia of 
rank bewildered the eye. That vain glory which had 
emblazoned on the heraldic scroll Mary's claim to 
the sceptre of England, displayed the device on the 
Dauphin's banners, carried by his band, who opened 
the jousts. The British ambassadors frowned, and 
the attendants of the fair Stuart exclaimed, as she 
was borne to her royal balcony, w Place, place for the 
Queen of England ! ' : There can be no apology for 
this insult to Elizabeth of England, which fore- 
shadowed future sorrow. 

The next dav Kins: Henry entered the lists. His 
fine figure and stately bearing were well set off by his 
black and white costume ; and near him rode the 
Duke of Guise, who, in honor of a remembered 
beautv, wore a crimson livery. The monarch won 
victories, and was applauded by the excited multi- 
tude. The third day of the tournament, he was rid- 
ing with a heart animated and proud with success, 



48 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

over the plain strown with the tokens of conflict, when 
he discovered two unbroken lances. Seizing one of 
them, he challenged Count Montgommeri to wield 
the other. The count hesitated, and the King's fam- 
ily sent messages of expostulation, as if a dread pre- 
sentiment of evil had clouded their joy. But flushed 
and ardent, he ordered Montgommeri to wheel for 
combat. The signal was given, and amidst the wild 
acclamations of the people, the brave steeds bore their 
riders toward the decisive encounter. Henry's mar- 
tial air was never more kingly, as he dashed toward 
the graceful Montgommeri. The lances met, and 
Henry reeled in his saddle, while a hush, then cries of 
alarm, followed the tragical close of popular re- 
joicings. A splinter of the count's lance had pierced 
the visor, and when the helmet was lifted, large red 
drops oozed from his death-wound. He exonerated 
his victor from blame, and after suffering eleven 
days, died July 10th, 1559. 

Pasquier, in his annals of those times, gives the 
impression made on the public mind by this fatal 
combat. He alludes to the alliance and treaty with 
Philip of Spain, and the persecution of Protestants, 
which followed a union of the Catholic monarchs, 
secured by the interference of a Jesuitical monk. 
Pasquier will not allow what strikes the serious stu- 
dent of history as altogether probable, that Henry's 
fate was a rebuke from Heaven, of his vaunting am- 
bition. 

" This deplorable catastrophe has given rise to var- 
ious sinister reflections ; and there are some who fancy 
they discover in it the visible retribution of Provi- 
dence, since, if we may credit the assertions of Car- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 49 

dinal Lorraine, the King had hurried the peace pur- 
posely, that he might be at leisure to extirpate by 
force, the heresy of Calvin. With this view, he sud- 
denly presented himself to the parliament, on the 
10th of June, to collect the various opinions of the 
members, of whom the majority recommended the 
suspension of penal laws, and the convocation of a 
general council. In the course of these deliberations, 
the King, having heard certain sentiments, with 
which he was justly offended, ordered several of the 
orators to be taken into custody. They were instantly 
conveyed to the Bastile, whence, according to certain 
sinister interpreters, the evil has lighted upon him 
by the special will of God, for having interrupted 
men in the exercise of their official duties. It is also 
observed that, as it was on the 10th of June that he 
consigned the counselors to the Bastile, so it was on 
the 10th of July that he received the stroke of death ; 
thus reason the misjudging multitude, who speak 
from passion rather than reason. But it is a singular 
fact that he should have commenced his reign on the 
10th of June, with the combat of Jarnac and la 
Chataigneraie ; and that, on the 10th of July, it was 
terminated in consequence of his combat with Mont- 
gommeri 

" His corpse lies in state in the very hall which he 
had erected for the celebration of the nuptial festivi- 
ties. The constable, in disgrace, watches the corpse; 
the Guises are omnipotent, the young King having 
espoused their niece ; the queen-mother is greatly com- 
miserated ; and consternation universally prevails 
with the people." 

During the last moments of Henry, amid the la- 

4 



50 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

mentations and tears of relatives, according to Mary's 
desire, Cardinal Lorraine and Duke of Guise were 
selected as the future ministers of the Dauphin. To 
complete the arrangements for a permanent harmony 
with foreign sovereigns, Margaret, the younger sis- 
ter of Francis, was privately married to the Duke of 
Savoy, in the light of torches, with an epithalam ium 
of convulsive sobs, and the almost audible gasping 
of the dying monarch. Francis was confined to his 
couch in the palace of Tournelles, when the officers 
of state entered his apartment, and announced his 
father's death, on the bended knee of loyalty, by salut- 
ing him King. As if an unearthly voice had sent 
the health-thrill along his nerves, he sprang from his 
.bed, and declared he was well. Such is the mastery 
of ambition ; it gives to boyhood the front of a heart- 
less trifler with human affection and the soul's de- 
parture to eternal scenes, and like the eagle whose 
eye confronts the sun, it gazes restlessly though 
vainly upon the veiled splendor of the " White 
Throne." Scarcely had Francis conferred with his 
counselors, before his mother joined them, to accom- 
pany him to the Louvre, where would be offered the 
usual congratulations and homage, upon the transfer 
of a crown to the brow of a successor. Mary silently 
followed in the train, when Catherine, who saw the 
declining glory of her family, in the elevation of the 
Guises, said to her, " Pass on, madam ; it is now for 
you to take precedence." The young Queen acknowl- 
edged the civility, but on reaching the chariot, re- 
fused to enter, until the desponding and ambitious 
widow passed in before her. The Dauphin was 
crowned at Rheims, where that ceremony had been 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 51 

performed on many previous kings of France, and 
immediately assumed the reins of government. 

In the meantime, the revolution in Scotland, re- 
motely kindled by the revolution tones of Luther's 
voice, and, favored by the brave martyr, Wishart, and 
the fearless Knox, had gone forward among the peo- 
ple. Lord James Stuart, the Queen's brother, Lord 
John Erskine, and Lord Lorn, had joined the stan- 
dard of the bold reformer, with other influential bar- 
ons, and formed themselves into religious congrega- 
tions. Wherever Knox was summoned by the of- 
fended priesthood, he scattered the live coals of truth 
upon the popular mind. At length, emboldened and 
encouraged by success, he appealed to the regent, 
Mary of Lorraine, for royal sanction to the new doc- 
trines. She met his demand with scorn, and assured 
him it was time to interpose a barrier to the waves of 
revolution, dangerous both to church and state. 
Knox was obliged to fly from the wrathful enemy to 
his retreat — Geneva, the home of Calvin. Soon after 
followed the solemn Covenant proposed by the exiled 
reformer, which was a mutual pledge by the Protes- 
tants to openly expose the corruptions of Rome, and 
worship God according to their own conscience. They 
farther formed an insurrectionary government, called 
the Lords of the Congregation, which prepared the 
way for bloody collision with the state. 

The regent, elated with prosperity in her favorite 
plans, became more intolerant, until she virtually de- 
clared civil war, by affirming the decisions of the 
bishops against heretics, and declaring her purpose 
to restore, on the overthrow of the reformers, the uni- 
versal sway of the Catholic church. Some of the 



52 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

fiercest battles of the Covenanters were fought about 
the time Henry of France received the fatal lance of 
Montgommeri. An armistice, extending to July 
24th, 1560, followed. 

This interlude was employed by the regent in send- 
ing a requisition -to her daughter for French troops, 
who were inactive, because of the peace of Cateau- 
Cambresis,* while Knox proceeded to Berwick, to ne- 
gotiate with the English governor for ships and sol- 
diers, with which the Protestant cause might be sus- 
tained against foreign foes. Elizabeth's sympathies 
and jealousy of Mary inclined her to comply with his 
request ; but she disliked both the term champion, 
who had written against female sovereignty in the 
state, and the Presbyterian form of the revolution. 
She first sent them three thousand pounds sterling, 
and after the Lords of the Congregation in public as- 
sembly passed a resolution, deposing the queen-regent, 
she agreed to furnish men and munitions of war, on 
condition of reciprocity in case the French turned 
their arms against the Queen of England. The revo- 
lutionary party preserved the appearance of loyalty 
to their sovereign, by making the treaty in her name, 
with the promise of obedience to her commands in all 
things that did not tend to molest the ancient laws 
and liberties of the land. Elizabeth replied to the 
charge of intervention in the affairs of Scotland, in 
the following strain, denying that the nobility of that 
realm were rebels : 

* This treaty, signed April 2-3, 1559, contained a secret 
article by which Henry II. of France and Granvella, acting 
in the Netherlands for Philip II. of Spain, formed an alliance 
for the purpose of exterminating " heresy," that is, Protes- 
tantism. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 53 

" And truly, if these barons should permit the gov- 
ernment of their kingdom to be wrested out of their 
hands during the absence of their Queen ; if they 
tamely gave up the independence of their native 
country, whilst she used the counsel, not of the Scots, 
but solely of the French, her mother and other for- 
eigners being her advisers in Scotland, and the Car- 
dinal and Duke of Guise in France, it were a good 
cause for the world to speak shame of them ; nay, if 
the young Queen herself should happen to survive 
her husband, she would in such a case have just occa- 
sion to condemn them all as cowards and unnatural 
subjects." 

During the long and remarkable siege of Leith, 
which followed these events, Mary of Lorraine, ex- 
hausted with anxiety and care, was taken sick, and 
conveyed to Edinburgh castle. She was soon aware 
of approaching dissolution, and asked an interview 
with the leaders of the Protestant party. The meet- 
ing was kind and affecting. She recounted the trou- 
bles of her kingdom, whose burden had hastened her 
death, and advised the removal of all foreign troops, 
and an adherence to that alliance which would best 
preserve their national independence. Then embrac- 
ing them with a dying kiss, she died amid their tears, 
June 10th, 1560. She had intellect and heart; but, 
led by ambition, and ruled by French advisers, she 
embittered her widowhood, involved her enthroned 
daughter in mournful calamities, and breathed her 
last, encircled with foes instead of family friends, 
whom she left in her native clime, for the empty 
honors of a brief regency. A treaty of peace sealed 
after her decease, contained the following articles: 



5± MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

" The French troops were to evacuate Scotland ; the 
fortifications of Leith to be demolished ; the sover- 
eigns of France cease to bear the arms and title of 
King and Queen of England ; the Duke of Chatel- 
herault and other Scottish nobles who possessed prop- 
erty in France, to have restored to them the lands and 
titles of which they had been deprived since their 
rebellion ; the high offices of Chancellor, Treasurer, 
and Comptroller to be conferred not upon ecclesiastics 
but upon laymen ; and the guardianship as well as 
the administration of the kingdom never to be again 
entrusted to foreign soldiers and dignitaries. The 
conduct of affairs was to be confided to a council of 
twelve members, seven of whom were to be nominated 
by the Queen, and five by the estates of the realm; 
and this council Avas instructed to introduce a bet- 
ter system into the government of the country. It 
was also agreed that a free Parliament should as- 
semble in the month of August." 

English influence and the reformers were now 
fairly in the ascendant. 

Meanwhile the health of Francis II., which had al- 
ways been frail, rapidly failed. The Guises were 
busy with plans for the extermination of Protestant- 
ism in France, which, with other ambitions and law- 
less schemes, sowed the seeds of a terrible harvest for 
unhappy France. The young King was no more 
than the toy of their fancy. One day suddenly faint- 
ing, he was borne to his chamber to die. Mary 
watched by his bedside faithfully, whose kindness he 
appreciated with child-like gratitude, and for whom 
he desired of Catherine, his mother, maternal interest. 
He expired December 5th, 1560, separating in his 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 55 

death the crowns of Scotland and France, and sus- 
pending the almost imperial power of the Princes of 
Lorraine. However sincely Mary may have mourned 
the loss of Francis as a husband, in a political view 
the union had been of disastrous omen to her future 
prospects. It had given energy and triumphs to the 
Reformation, made the French odious, and shorn the 
regal authority of its strength and majesty to the 
Scotch nation. Mary saw the extent of her bereave- 
ment — left an orphan and widow at eighteen, and 
compelled to abandon - a throne, for the regency of 
Catherine de Medicis, whose aspirations for power 
were so revived by the Stuart's affliction, that she 
seemed cheerfully to sacrifice an inefficient son. The 
Queen, sadly beautiful in her grief, retired to seclu- 
sion in the palace, whose solitude for several weeks 
was broken only by the presence of immediate rela- 
tives. The device which she invented for a mourn- 
ing seal, was a liquorice tree, whose root only is val- 
uable ; beneath it was " Dulce meum terra tegit " — 
My treasure is in the ground. The following letter 
was written in answer to messages of condolence from 
Philip ; and in its brevity exhibits a refined sense of 
propriety, while its sentiment is altogether womanly 
and touching: 

THE QUEEN OF SCOTS TO KING PHILIP II. 

" To the King of Spain. 

" Monsieur my good Brother — I was unwilling to 
omit this opportunity of writing to you, to thank you 
for the polite letters you sent me by Signor Don An- 
tonio, and for the civil things which he and your em- 



56 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

bassador said to me concerning the sorrow you felt 
for the death of the late King, my lord, assuring 
you, monsieur my good brother, that you have lost in 
him the best brother you ever had, and that vou have 
comforted by your letters the most afflicted, poor 
woman under heaven, God having bereft me of all 
that I loved and held dear on earth, and left me no 
other consolation whatever but when I see those who 
deplore his loss and my too great misfortune. God 
will assist me, if he pleases, to bear what comes from 
him with patience ; as I confess that, without his aid, 
I should find so great a calamity too insupportable 
for my strength and my little virtue. But, knowing 
that it is not reasonable you should be annoyed by 
my letters, which can only be filled with this melan- 
choly subject, I will conclude, after beseeching you 
to be a good brother to me in my affliction, and to con- 
tinue me in your favor, to which I affectionately com- 
mend myself, praying God to give you, monsieur my 
good brother, as much happiness as I wish you. 
u Your very good sister and cousin, 

" Mary." 

Elizabeth of England sent the Earl of Bedford to 
convey her condolence to her mourning rival. After 
this duty was performed, he urged the Queen, as 
Throckmorton, the English ambassador, had before 
vainly done, to ratify the treaty of Edinburgh. It is 
not singular that she continued to refuse, while her 
aspirings towards a foreign throne were cherished by 
the controlling minds of the house of Lorraine. She 
expressed the desire to have a personal interview with 
Elizabeth, and requested her portrait; and thus ter- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 57 

minated the two-fold mission of the earl. The Span- 
ish ambassador was among the first foreign officials 
admitted to the presence of Mary, and Catherine saw 
in the incident the foreshadowing of an offer of mar- 
riage to Don Carlos, son of Philip II. 

The sovereigns of Sweden and Denmark also as- 
pired to a similar honor. The regent of France, 
from suspicion of an alliance unfavorable to her aug- 
menting power, or prompted by a cherished antipathy 
to Mary, intimated to the duke and cardinal her wish 
to have the attractive young Queen more remote from 
the arena of her own ambitious designs. The duke 
therefore, who was a man of high spirit and no prin- 
ciple, persuaded his niece to depart for Rheims, 
where her mother's form was buried. Thence she 
was to visit her grandmother, Duchess of Guise, at 
Joinville, who still lived in dismal solitude ; and, soon 
after as possible, embark for Scotland. Mary loved 
the sunny clime of France. It had been the home of 
her childhood, and her dead were there. Her sensi- 
tive nature recoiled from the cold air and sterner 
manners of her native land. At this crisis a letter 
was written from the " Laird of Lethington " to Sir 
William Cecil, that gives a comprehensive view of the 
attitude of factions in Scotland, and from which a 
passage is quoted, disclosing the public feeling in 
view of Mary's expected advent : 

; - Sir : That thus long I have delayed to write unto 
your honor, I pray, impute it only to my absence. I 
have been these forty days in the north parts of Scot- 
land with my Lord James, where we have not been 
altogether unoccupied ; but so far as occasion would 



58 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

serve, advancing the religion and common cause. 
Since our returning, I have understood the stay of 
Monsieur d'Oysel, and judge that you have wisely 
foreseen the inconveniences that might have followed 
upon his coming hither. I do also allow your opinion 
anent the Queen our sovereign's journey towards 
Scotland ; whose coming hither, if she be enemy to 
the religion, and so affected towards that realm, as 
she yet appeareth, shall not fail to raise wonderful 
tragedies. Although the religion here hath in out- 
ward appearance the upper hand, and few or none 
there be that openly dare profess the contra?°y, yet 
"know iv e the hollow hearts of a great number, who 
would be glad to see it and us overthrown ; and if time 
served, would join with her authority to that effect: 
but I foresee, that the difficulty thereof shall make 
that which is most principal in intention be last in 
execution. Sure I am, the suppressing of religion is 
chiefly meant, but the same must be pressed but 
by indirect means. First of all, the comfort which 
we have of the Queen's majesty's * friendship must 
be cut off by dissolution of the intelligence begun of 
late ; which being not feasible in her absence, her own 
presence will make more easy. The Papists, you 
know, be in their hearts, for religion's sake, alto- 
gether enemies of this conjunction. Those that gave 
themselves forth for Protestants be not all alike ear- 
nestly bent to maintain it. Some have been accus- 
tomed so to feed upon the French fare, that their 
delicate stomachs cannot well digest any other. Some 

* Elizabeth, — a correspondence with whose ministers had 
commenced during the commotions in Scotland, and was 
regularly continued till her death. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 59 

be so covetous, that wheresoever the lure of commo- 
dity is showed unto them, thither will they fly. Some 
so inconstant, that they may be easily carried away 
by the countenance of their princess' presence, some- 
times showing them a good visage, and sometimes, as 
occasion shall require, frowning on them. Others 
there be so careless and ignorant, that they will rather 
respect their present ease, which shall bring after it 
most grievous calamities, than with the hazard of a 
little present incommodity put them and theirs in 
full security afterwards : these to be a great number, 
in our late danger, we had large experience ; yet I 
doubt not but the best sort will constantly and stoutly 
bear out that which they have begun. Marry, what 
difficulty and hazard shall be in it, you may judge, 
when the Queen shall so easily win to her party the 
whole Papists, and so many Protestants as be either 
addicted to the French faction,* covetous, inconsis- 
tent, uneasy, ignorant, or careless. So long as her 
highness is absent, in this case, there is no peril ; but 
you may judge what the presence of a prince, being 
craftily counseled, is able to bring to pass. Every man 
once in a year hath to do with his prince's benevo- 
lence ; if at that time, when his particular business oc- 
curreth, her countenance shall be but strange to him 
in sight of the peril, in what case shall the subject 
then be ? Every man hath in his private causes some 
enemy or unfriend : what boldness shall they not take, 
seeing an advantage, and knowing their adversary to 
be out of the prince's good grace ? She will not be 
served with those that bear any good-will to England. 
Some quarrel shall be picked to them, not directly for 
* The French and English factions still distracted Scotland, 



60 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

religion at the first ; but where the accusation of 
heresy would be odious, men must be charged with 
treason. The like of this in that realm, I think, hath 
been seen in Queen Mary's days ; a few numbers thus 
disgraced, dispatched, or dispersed, the rest will be 
an easy prey, and then may the butchery of Bonner 
plainly begin. I make not this discourse as our 
meaning to debar her majesty from her kingdom, or 
that we would wish she should never come home (for 
that were the part of an unnatural subject,) but 
rather desiring such things as be necessary so to he 
'provided for in the meantime , that neither she, by fol- 
lowing the wicked advice of God's enemies, to lose the 
hearts of her subjects, neither yet so many as tender 
the glory of God and liberties of their native country, 
to be the sons of death. The best is, that intelligence 
begun betwixt these two kingdoms may endure and 
be increased, the breach whereof I know will be at- 
tempted by all means possible. 

" The great desire I have of the continuance, mak- 
eth me so earnest to wish that her majesty may be in- 
duced by good means to enter in the same conjunc- 
tion ; whereunto if she cannot by one way or other be 
persuaded, then can I not but doubt of the success in 
the end. Although I do chiefly respect the common 
cause and public estate, yet doth my own private not 
a little move me to be careful in this behalf. In what 
case I stand, you will easily judge by sight of the en- 
closed, which I pray you, return to me with speed. I 
know by my very friends in France, that she hath 
conceived such an opinion of my affection towards 
England, that it killeth all the means I can have to 
enter in any favor. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 61 

''"But if it might be compassed that the Queen's 
majesty and her highness might be as dear friends as 
they be tender cousins, then were I able enough to 
have as good part in her good grace, as any other of 
my quality in Scotland. If this cannot be brought 
to pass, then I see well, at length, it will be hard for 
me to dwell in Rome, and strive with the Pope. I 
assure you this whole realm is in a miserable case, to 
the Queen, or sovereign, come shortly home, the dan- 
gers be evident and many ; and if she shall not come, 
it is not without great peril ; yea, what is not to be 
feared in a realm lacking lawful government ? It is 
now more than two years past that we have lived in 
a manner without any regiment ; which, when I con- 
sider sometimes with myself, I marvel from whence 
doth proceed the quietness which we presently enjoy, 
the like whereof, I think, all circumstances being 
weighed, was never seen in any realm. It would 
seem impossible that any people could so long be con- 
tained in order, without fear of punishment and 
strict execution of the laws ; and, indeed I cannot by 
searching, find out any probable reason, but only that 
it has pleased the goodness of God to give this glory 
to his truth preached among us; but by all worldly 
judgment, the policy cannot thus long endure ; so that 
for this respect her absence to us is most pernicious. 
Thus, whether she come or not, we be in a great 
strait." 

The Catholic party, at a secret meeting, commis- 
sioned John Lesley, of Aberdeen, to assure the Queen 
of their unabated devotion to her majesty. He inter- 
cepted her at Vitry in Champagne, en route from 



62 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

Rheims, where she had passed a part of the winter, to 
Joinville. Lesley proposed an immediate return to 
Scotland ; that she should detain her Protestant broth- 
er in France, who had been dispatched by the revolu- 
tionary Parliament, until after her return to her 
realm ; and to sail to Aberdeen, when a force of two 
thousand men would escort her to her throne. Mary 
wisely rejected the propositions of an unreliable fac- 
tion, and sought for measures of more general and 
popular character. She had sent four commissioners 
to convey expressions of affection to her people, and 
promises of conciliation upon her speedy return. 
Parliament responded by dispatching Lord James, 
whose rank and growing influence with the reformers, 
and strength of character, fitted him for the deli- 
cate mission. He met Mary the day after the in- 
terview with Lesley. By all his pleas in behalf of 
the congregation, and the treaty of Edinburgh, she 
was unshaken in her determination to maintain the 
Catholic faith, and dissolve the union between her 
kingdom and England. She attempted, by the offer 
of a cardinal's hat, and other royal gifts, to win Lord 
James to her views. But, steadfast in his convic- 
tions, he secured by his decision, however distasteful 
in itself to the Queen, her greater confidence — a re- 
sult always certain in the trial of principle. Mary 
continued her journey to Nancy, into which she made 
a public entry. Here her noble relatives honored 
their guest with a succession of splendid entertain- 
ments, and the excitements of the chase, and all the 
dazzling variety of invented pleasures. Wearied 
with this gayety, and frail in health, she hastened to 
the fine climate and solemn entertainments of Join- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 63 

ville. She found the venerable duchess veiled in 
crape, the presiding spectre of her sepulchral man- 
sion. The spring had vanished, and glorious June 
had tinged with reviving breath her pallid cheeks. 
Her dark tresses fell to her mourning apparel, which 
was snowy white, in graceful lines ; her beaming eyes 
were full of soul and gentleness ; and her subdued 
tones had an indescribable eloquence, that charmed 
to silent admiration those who came in her presence. 
She was admired by prince and peasant, and the 
throngs gazed at her when she appeared in public, as 
if a celestial visitant were passing. This strange 
beauty and Mary's romantic experience already cast 
into eclipse her faults of character. 

From Joinville she revisited Rheims, and after a 
brief stay proceeded to Paris. Her entry into the 
capital was not attended with a tumultuous throng, 
but with peculiar appropriateness. She was escorted 
by the princes of the royal line, and a company of 
cavaliers, who appeared like a select train of devotees 
around their serene and unrivaled goddess. While in 
the brilliant centre of Parisian pleasures, Protestant 
influences not unfrequently reached her. During 
an interview with Throckmorton, she freely declared 
her unyielding adherence to Rome : 

" To be plain with you, the religion which I pro- 
fess I take to be the most acceptable to God ; and, 
indeed, neither do I know, or desire to know, any 
other. Constancy becometh all people well, and none 
better than princes, and such as have rule over realms, 
and especially in matters of religion. I have been 
brought up in this religion, and who might credit me 



64: MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

in anything, if I should show myself light in this 
cause ? And though I be young, and not well learned, 
yet have I heard this matter oft disputed by mine 
uncle, my lord cardinal, and I found therein no great 
reason to change my opinion. 

" I am none of those that will change my religion 
every year ; and, as I told you in the beginning, I 
mean to constrain none of my subjects, but would 
wish that they were all as I am; and, I trust, they 
should have no support to constrain me." 

The struggle in Mary's heart between ambition, 
stimulated by the Guises, and attachment to the 
genial air and early friends of France, was intense; 
but it turned in favor of a perilous voyage and a more 
'perilous throne. She prepared " to go and reign in 
her wild country." D'Oysel was commissioned to be 
her herald, and requested from Elizabeth a safe con- 
duct through her kingdom. The stern sovereign of 
the world's most mighty realm in the great elements 
of power, promptly refused the permission until 
Mary had signed the treaty of Edinburgh. This re- 
pulse touched keenly the sensibility of the Queen of 
Scots. She thus gave expression to her emotions in a 
private conference with the English ambassador : 

" There is nothing that doth more grieve me than 
that I did so forget myself, as to require of the Queen, 
your mistress, that favor which I had no need to ask. 
I needed no more to have made her privy to my 
journey, than she doth me of hers. I may pass well 
enough into mine own realm, I think, without her 
passport or license; for, though the late king, your 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 65 

master, used all the impeachment he could, both to 
stay me, and catch me, when I came hither, yet know, 
Monsieur l'Ambassadeur, I came hither safely ; and I 
may have as good means to help me home again, as I 
had to come hither, if I would employ my friends.* 
Truly, I was far from evil-meaning to the Queen, 
your mistress, at this time to employ her amity to 
stand me in stead than all the friends I have; and 
yet, you know, both in this realm and elsewhere, I 
have both friends and allies, and such as would be 
glad and willing to employ both their forces and aid. 
You have often told me, that the amity between the 
Queen, your mistress, and me, were very necessary 
and profitable to us both. I have some reason, now, 
to think that the Queen, your mistress, is not of that 
mind ; for, I am sure, if she were, she would not have 
received me thus unkindly. It seems she makes more 
account of the amity of my disobedient subjects, than 
of me their sovereign, who am her equal in degree, 
though inferior in wisdom and experience, her near- 
est kinswoman, and her next neighbor. The Queen, 
your mistress, doth say that I am young, and do lack 
experience. But I have age enough and experience 
to behave myself towards my friends and kinsfolks 
friendly and uprightly, and I trust my discretion 
shall not so fail me that my passion shall move me to 
use other language of her than is due to a queen and 
my next kinswoman." 

The next day, July 21st, she addressed Throckmor- 
ton, in the following very beautiful words, which re- 
veal her sad forebodings of evil : 

* Cabala. 



M MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

" I trust the wind will be so favorable as I shall 
not need to come on the coast of England, and if I do, 
then, Monsieur l'Ambassadeur, the Queen your mis- 
tress, shall have me in her hands to do her will of me ; 
and if she be so hard-hearted as to desire mv end, she 
may then do her pleasure and make sacrifice of me. 
Per ad venture that casualty might be better for me 
than to live ; in this matter God's will be fulfilled." 

Catherine's proud spirit was softened by the ap- 
proaching separation, and she accompanied Mary to 
St. Germain, where, thirteen years before, she first 
saw and embraced the laughing girl, who now left 
her a widow, mature in character, and drinking 
deeply of sorrow's cup. From St. Germain, the 
princes of Lorraine, with a retinue of the nobility, 
made the journey to Calais, a triumphal procession 
in appearance, w 7 hile many hearts were painfully 
throbbing ; and none more wildly beating than that of 
the sad and silent Mary. After six days' delay, she 
saw the two galleys and two vessels of burden, riding 
at anchor, ready for the royal train. Amid a throng 
of excited spectators, the youthful Queen folded her 
graceful arms around cherished forms, and shed tears 
like rain, in that mournful adieu. The four Marys 
were with her. From infancy she had cherished the 
strange, superstitious fancies of the age. Writes 
Brantome of the departing attendants : " Habitually 
superstitious, in embarking for the royal galley, Mary 
was appalled by the mournful spectacle of a vessel 
striking against the pier, and sinking to rise no more ; 
overwhelmed with the sight the unhappy queen ex- 
claimed, ' O God ! what fatal omen is this for a voy- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 07 

age ! ' then rushing towards the stern, she knelt down, 
and, covering her face, sobbed aloud, ' Farewell ! 
France, farewell ! I shall never, never see thee 

more ! ' 

" The galley having left port, and a slight breeze 
having sprung up, we began to set sail. . . . She, 
with both arms resting on the poop of the galley near 
the helm, began to shed floods of tears, continually 
casting her beautiful eyes towards the port and the 
country she had left, and uttering these mournful 
words: Farewell, France! until night began to fall. 
She desired to go to bed without taking any food, and 
would not go down into her cabin, so her bed was 
prepared on the deck. She commanded the steers- 
man, as soon as it was day, if he could still discern 
the coast of France, to wake her and not fear to call 
her ; in which fortune favored her ; for, the wind hav- 
ing ceased, and recourse being had to the oars, very 
little progress was had during the night ; so that when 
day appeared, the coast of France was still visible, 
and the steersman not having failed to perform the 
commands which she had given to him, she sat up in 
her bed, and began again to look at France as long as 
she could, and then she redoubled her lamentations: 
Farewell, France! Farewell, France! I think I 
shall never see thee more ! " 

Such was the anguish of the mourning exile, in 
whom, on this touching occasion, the woman eclipsed 
the queen, and won admiration which was never ren- 
dered to the severer virtues of Elizabeth. Mary was 
gifted with poetical genius, and commemorated this 



68 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

rending of ties and beginning of sorrows, in a beauti- 
poem.* 

* Adieu. 

Adieu, plaisant pays de France ! 

O ma patrie, 

La plus cherie ; 
Qui a nourri ma jeune enfance. 
Adieu, France ! adieu, mes beaux jours! 
La nef qui dejoint mes amours, 
N'a cy de moi que la moitie 
Une parte te reste ; elle est tienne ; 
Je la fie a ton ami tie, 
Pour que de l'autre il te souvienne. 

" Adieu. 

" Farewell to thee, thou pleasant shore, 
The loved, the cherished home to me 
Of infant joy, a dream that's o'er, 

Farewell, dear France ! farewell to thee ! 

" The sail that wafts me bears away 
From thee but half my soul alone ; 
Its fellow half will fondly stay, 
And back to thee has faithful flown. 

" I trust it to thy gentle care ; 

For all that here remains with me 
Lives but to think of all that's there, 
To love and to remember thee." 



CHAPTER III. 

When the morning dawned upon the royal galley, 
and the banks of oars dripped with the flashing 
waters, Mary's tears flowed afresh at the sight of a 
shadowy outline of the land she had left forever. 
She gazed fondly at the fading horizon, while the 
breeze lifted her dark tresses, and filled the drooping 
sails. The rowers ceased their measured strokes, the 
vessel's prow cut the foam, and in an hour, all that 
remained of France to Mary, was a mournfully pleas- 
ant dream, and the companions of her voyage. The 
galley swept past a dangerous shoal, and she re- 
marked upon the peril to which it had been exposed, 
" that for the sake of her friends, and for the common 
weal, she ought to rejoice; but that for herself, she 
should have esteemed it a privilege so to have ended 
her course." 

She had anticipated the appearance of English 
cruisers, despatched by Elizabeth to intercept her 
course ; but nothing occurred to prevent a prosperous 
transit to the shores of her unquiet kingdom. On the 
19th of August, 1561, the fleet emerging from a 
heavy fog which had fallen the preceding evening, 
sooner than was expected by the Queen's subjects, 
sailed into the harbor of Leith.* 

* Leith is the port of Edinburgh, and though the two cities 
have separate governments, they are in other respects practi- 
cally one. The route of the procession would be up the Leith 

69 



TO MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

The tidings flew, and the people flocked to behold 
and welcome their Queen, whose charms made a fav- 
orable impression upon those who dreaded her relig- 
ious influence upon the realm. The nobility has- 
tened to escort her to Edinburgh, and the ancient 
palace of Holyrood. A palfrey was provided for her, 
and her train rode upon highland ponies, " such as 
they were, and harnessed to match." Mary felt 
keenly the contrast between the pomp and magnifi- 
cence of the French court, and her humble entrance 
into the ruder dominions of her inheritance. Tears 
again dimmed her vision ; and she saw in the plain 
manners, and music of sacred psalmody, character- 
istic of the reformers, a source of perpetual pain to 
her natural and religious sensibilities. The surface- 
dressing in social life and divine worship, which had 
polished the daughter of Stuart, unfitted her for the 
stern elements on which she must thenceforth lay her 
gentle hand. 

John Knox, in a graphic description of Mary's re- 
ception, discloses his own strong emotions and fearful 
apprehensions, in view of the reign of a Catholic sov- 
ereign. 

" The very face of the heavens at the time of her 
arrival did manifestly speak what comfort was 
brought into this country with her: to wit, sorrow, 
dolor, darkness, and all impiety; for in the memory 
of man that day of the year was never seen a more 
dolorous face of the heavens, than was at her arrival, 

Walk to the east end of Princess street, thence across the 
ravine to the castle, and thence down High street and Canon- 
gate to Holyrood palace. The entire distance would be about 
four miles. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. fl 

which two days after did so continue ; for, besides the 
surface wet, and the corruption of the air, the mist 
was so thick and dark that scarce could any man 
espy another the length of two pair of butts. The 
sun was not seen to shine two days before nor two 
days after. That fore-warning, gave God to us — but 
alas ! the most part were blind. 

" At the sound of the cannon which the galleys 
shot, happy was he or she that first must have pres- 
ence of the Queen. The Protestants were not the 
slowest, and therein they were not to be blamed. Be- 
cause the palace of Holyrood-House was not thor- 
oughly put in order, for her coming was more sudden 
than many looked for, she remained in Leith till to- 
wards the evening, and then repaired thither. In the 
way betwixt Leith and the abbey, met her the rebels 
and crafts of men of whom we spoke of before, to 
wit, those that had violated the acts of the magis- 
trates, and had besieged the provost. But because 
she was sufficiently instructed that all they did was 
done in spite of their religion, they were easily par- 
doned. Fires of joy were set forth at night, and a 
company of most honest men, with instruments of 
music, and with musicians, gave their salutations at 
her chamber window ; the melody, as she alleged, 
liked her well, and she willed the same to be con- 
tinued some nights after with great diligence. The 
lords repaired to her from all quarters, and so was 
nothing understood but mirth and quietness, till the 
next Sunday, which was the 24-th of August, when 
that preparation began to be made for that idol, the 
mass, to be said in the chapel ; which perceived, the 
most of all the godly began to speak openly : ' Shall 



72 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

that idol be suffered again to take place beneath this 
realm ? It shall not.' The Lord Lindsay (then but 
master) with the gentlemen of Fife, and others, 
plainly cried in the close or yard, ' The idolatrous 
priests shall die the death, according to God's law.' 
One that carried in the candle was evil afraid. But- 
then began flesh and blood to show itself. There 
durst no Papist, neither yet any that came out of 
France, whisper, but the Lord James, the man whom 
all the godly did most reverence, took upon him to 
keep the chapel door. His best excuse was, that he 
would stop all Scottish men to enter into the mass. 
But it was and is sufficiently known, that the door was 
kept, that none should have entry to trouble the priest, 
who, after the mass was ended, was committed to the 
protection of the Lord John of Coldingham and Lord 

Robert of , who then were both Protestants, 

and had communicated at the table of tke Lord; be- 
twixt them both the priest was conveyed to the 
chamber. . . . And so the godly departed with 
grief of heart, and in the afternoon repaired to the 
abbey in great companies, and gave plain signification 
that they could not abide that the land which God by 
his power had purged from idolatry, should in their 
eyes be polluted again, and so began complaint upon 
complaint. The old duntebors [ladies of the bed- 
chamber] and others, that had long served in the 
court, hoped to have no remission of sins but by vir- 
tue of the mass, cried, they would away to France 
without delay — they could not live without the mass ; 
the same affirmed the Queen's uncle; and would to 
God. that altogether, with the mass, they had taken 
good night of the realm forever." 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. V3 

Knox, whose " single voice could put more life into 
a host than six hundred blustering trumpets" was a 
terror to many. In the sublime persuasion that he 
was commissioned by God to lead the " sacramental 
host " against the corrupt hierarchy of Rome, he was 
unapproachable by bribery, unmoved by penalties, 
and only annealed for combat in the furnace of trial. 
The blandishments of wealth, the sufferings of pen- 
ury, and the scoffs of the great, were equally unfelt by 
him, who had made, as an oblation to the Lord, the 
entire consecration of his powers to the one object of 
life — the extermination of Popery in his beloved Scot- 
land. Gifted with a high order of intellect, and 
courageous, he was animated by ardent enthusiasm, 
controlled by inflexibility of purpose, and a thorough 
knowledge of the human heart. He swayed men by 
his lofty determination, fearless denunciations, and 
evident sincerity. The faults of such men as Luther, 
Knox, and Cromwell, were those of champions in a 
mighty conflict, who had not time to polish their 
weapons, or always regard the amenities and rules 
of more peaceful life. 

'• It was as an apostle, or rather as a prophet, that 
Knox challenged homage. In his own conceptions 
he was alternately the Elijah rebuking Ahab — the 
Jeremiah denouncing Israel — the John the Baptist, 
who could overawe even the presumptuous Herod. 
Woe to the man who incurred his wrath, or fell under 
his chastisement ! Unhappy they who became the 
object of his antipathy or suspicion ! In this predica- 
ment was Mary Stuart ! Whatever prejudice he had 
originally conceived against a daughter of Guise, was 
confirmed and justified by the administration of her 



74: MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS- 

uncles. Educated under their auspices, imbued with 
their principles, he regarded her as infected with 
their cruelty and perfidy — as a Papist, incapable of 
any moral virtue — as an idolater, worse than an in- 
fidel. If she would subdue his prejudice, she must 
disclaim her superstitions, renounce the mass, for- 
sake the idol — on no other condition could he be per- 
suaded that she was entitled to esteem and confi- 
dence." 

He regarded the mass the coronation of the " man 
of sin " upon Puritan soil ; and he therefore said, that 
" one mass was more fearful to him than if ten thou- 
sand armed enemies were landed in every part of the 
realm." And soon after the first Sabbath of the royal 
retinue in Holyrood, he thus unbosomed his heart in 
a letter to Calvin at Geneva : 

" The arrival of the Queen has disturbed the tran- 
quillity of our affairs. She had scarcely been back 
three days, before the idol of the mass was again set 
up. Some prudent men of great authority endeav- 
ored to prevent it, saying that their purified con- 
science could not suffer that that land should again 
be contaminated, which the Lord, by the efficacy of 
his word, had purged from idolatry. But as the 
major part of those who adhere to our faith thought 
differently, impiety gained the victory, and is now 
acquiring fresh strength. Those who favored it give 
as a reason for their indulgence, that all the ministers 
of the Lord are of opinion, and that you yourself de- 
clare, that it is not lawful for us to prevent the Queen 
from practising her religion. Although I contradict 
this rumor, which appears to me very false, it has 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 75 

taken such deep root in men's hearts, that it will be 
impossible for me to dislodge it, unless I learn from 
you whether the question has been actually submitted 
to your Church, and what was the answer of the 
brethren. I am always troubling you w 7 ith such in- 
quiries, but I have no one else into whose bosom I 
can pour my cares. I confess candidly, my father, 
that I have never until now felt how painful and diffi- 
cult it is to combat hypocrisy when concealed under 
the mask of piety. I have never feared open ene- 
mies so greatly, but that, in the midst of my tribula- 
tions, I have hoped to gain the victory." 

It was no pleasant pastime to confront such a 
leader of the Protestant party — a party too powerful 
to crush, and not susceptible to the flatteries or im- 
posing forms of papal worship. 

Yet Mary hoped to conciliate her restive subjects 
by her smiles, and a concession which she thought 
might reconcile them to her private observance of her 
own religious forms. She issued a proclamation, that 
no alteration should be made in the established re- 
ligion, " and that any act, whether public or private, 
which tended to change its form, should be punished 
with death." She also exchanged her apparel of white 
crape, which had won in France the appellation of 
hC Keine Blanche " — White Queen — for the mourn- 
ing of her people — a sable dress. This attire en- 
hanced her beauty, like the dark back-ground to a 
picture of celestial penciling. 

On the second of September she made her public 
entry into Edinburgh. Her train issued from the 
castle in the afternoon, and moved towards " Scotia's 



fjQ MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

ancient seat/' under a canopy of violet velvet, and fol- 
lowed by the nobility. She was greeted with the 
pageant of a child, six years of age, issuing from a 
cloud, as if descending from Heaven, who, after re- 
peating a poem, presented her with the keys of Edin- 
burgh, a Bible, and Book of Psalms. 

Contrasted with these signals of loyalty, were 
warnings in various symbols along her way. The fate 
of Korah, and of Dathan and Abiram, were set forth, 
with other significant exhibitions of indignation 
against the rites of idolatrous Rome. After these 
scenes had transpired, Mary desired to have an inter- 
view with Knox, whose presence she was willing to 
endure for the sake of her kingdom. The following 
is the account given by the reformer himself, of his 
visit to the Queen, whom he found alone with her 
brother, Lord James, and who at the outset re- 
proached him for his work against Female Sov- 
ereigns. To this he replied : 

" Learned men, in all ages, have had their judg- 
ments free, and most commonly disagreeing from the 
common judgment of the world ; such also have they 
published both with pen and tongue, notwithstanding 
they themselves have lived in the common society 
with others, and have borne patiently with the errors 
and imperfections which they could not amend. 
Plato, the philosopher, wrote his book of the Com- 
monwealth, in the which he condemns many things 
that were maintained in the world, and required 
many things to have been reformed; and yet, not- 
withstanding, he lived under such politics as then 
were universally received, without further troubling 
any state ; even so, madam, am I content to do, in up- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. ?7 

Tightness of heart, and with the testimony of a good 
conscience I have communicated my judgment to the 
world. If the realm find no inconvenience in the re- 
gimen of a woman, that which they approve shall I 
not farther disallow them within mv own breast, but 
shall be as well content, and shall live under your 
majesty, as Paul was to live under the Roman Em- 
peror; and my hope is, that so long as you defile not 
your hands with the blood of the saints of God, that 
neither I nor that book shall either hurt you or your 
authority ; for in very deed, madam, that book was 
written most especially against wicked Mary * of 
England." 

" But you speak of women in general ? " 

" Most true it is, madam ; and yet plainly appear- 
eth to me that wisdom should persuade your majesty 
never to raise trouble for that which this day hath not 
troubled your majesty, neither in person nor in 
anxiety. For of late years, many things which before 
were holden stable, have been called in doubt ; yea, 
they have been plainly impugned: but yet, madam, 
I am assured that neither Protestant nor Papist shall 
be able to prove that any such question was at any 
time moved in public or in private. Even, madam, 
if I had intended to trouble your estate, because you 
are a woman, I might have chosen a time more con- 
venient for that purpose than I could do now, when 
your own presence is within the realm." 

Knox repelled the charges of sedition and necro- 
mancy, which seemed to satisfy the Queen, who yet 
complained of the seditious influence of his reasoning. 

'* You have brought the people to receive another 
* Bloody Mary. 



78 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

religion than their princes can allow — and how can 
that doctrine be of God, seeing that God commandeth 
subjects to obey their prince ? " 

" Madam, as right religion took neither original 
nor integrity from worldly princes, but from the eter- 
nal God alone, so are not subjects bound to frame 
their religion according to the appetite of their 
princes. If all the seed of Abraham should have been 
of the religion of Pharaoh, what religion should there 
have been in the world ? Or if all men in the days of 
the Roman Emperors should have been of the religion 
of the Roman Emperors, what religion should have 
been on the face of the earth ? Daniel and his fel- 
lows were subject to Nebuchadnezzar and unto Da- 
rius, and yet they would not be of their religion." 

Mary, in reply, urged that none of the worthies 
mentioned took arms against the king. Knox con- 
tinued : 

" Yet, madam, ye cannot deny but that they re- 
sisted ; for those that obey not the commandments 
given, in some sort resist." 

" But yet," reiterated the Queen, " they resisted 
not by the sword." 

u God, madam, had not given them the power and 
the means." 

" Think you that subjects, having the power, may 
resist their princes ? " 

" If princes do exceed their bounds, madam, or do 
against that wherefore they should be obeyed, there 
is no doubt they may be resisted, even by power ; for 
there is neither greater honor nor greater obedience to 
be given to kings and princes than to father or 
mother ; but so it is, that the father may be stricken 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 79 

with a phrenzy, in the which he will slay his own 
children ; now, madam, if the children arise, appre- 
hend the father, take the sword or other weapon from 
him, and finally bind his hands, and keep him in 
prison till his phrenzy be overpast, think ye, madam, 
that the children do any wrong ? " 

The mention of a prison awakened Mary's fears 
with so visible effect, that afterwards it was related 
as evidence of supernatural inspiration in this stern 
reprover of monarchs. 

When Knox alluded to the protection sovereigns 
might give to the church of Christ, she replied in an- 
ger — ki Yes, this is indeed true, but yours is not the 
church that I will nourish. I will defend the church 
of Rome, for I think it the true church of God. He 
replied indignantly, that her will was not reason, and 
her opinion could not change that harlot into the im- 
maculate spouse of Christ. He farther offered to 
prove that the Catholic chureh was more degenerate 
and corrupt than the Jewish nation, when they cru- 
cified Christ. But Mary closed the exciting debate, 
and bade him farewell. He left her presence, pray- 
ing God " she might be as blessed in the common- 
wealth of Scotland, as ever Deborah was in the com- 
monwealth of Israel." 

The zeal of the unyielding Covenanter displeased 
the more politic leaders of the Protestant party. In 
a letter to Cecil, Lethington wrote : 

" You know the vehemency of Mr. Knox's spirit, 
which cannot be bridled, and yet doth sometimes ut- 
ter such sentences as cannot easily be digested by a 
weak stomach. I could wish he would deal with her 



80 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

more gently, being a young princess unpersuaded. 
For this I am accounted too politic, but surely in her 
comporting with him she doth declare a wisdom far 
exceeding her age. God grant her the assistance of 
his Spirit ! " 

The compromise with Protestantism which pre- 
vailed, secured to the Queen the enjoyment of her 
own faith, conferred authority upon a mixed council 
and retaining two-thirds of the revenues for the 
Catholics and nobility, devoted one-third to the use 
of the new church. But other troubles remained un- 
touched. There were the revolted and factious nobles 
to subdue ; the probable collision with Elizabeth ; and, 
finally, the question of her marriage, — for to accept 
a foreign prince would endanger her crown, and to 
marry a subject would sow additional discords in her 
kingdom. 

Lord James Stuart was a master spirit among her 
admirers, and acted wisely, though a decided Protes- 
tant. The Queen made him Earl of Mar upon his 
marriage with the daughter of the Earl Marshal, and 
invested him with power to subdue the rebels on the 
frontier. He entered upon the difficult command, 
and with the heroic energy of his decided character, 
soon finished the work. His elevation increased the 
discontent of a jealous aristocracy ; and in a fit of 
insanity, the Earl of Arran revealed a plot, which was 
disclosed to him by Earl of Bothwell and the Abbot 
of Kilwinning, for invading the palace, making Mary 
a prisoner, and killing Lord James, to secure the reins 
of government. The conspiracy was of course 
crushed, and its authors were arrested. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 81 

Mary, meanwhile, had given to the sombre apart- 
ments of Holyrood, the luxury and much of the ele- 
gance of a French court. She embellished the walls 
with tapestry, adorned her person with jewels, and 
found amusement in directing, by her taste, the im- 
provements in landscape gardening. Of the four 
Marys who had been her companions from girlhood, 
the amiable Flemming married Maitland, Mary Liv- 
ingston, William, eldest son of Lord Temple, and 
Mary Beaton, though once engaged, and Mary Sea- 
ton, remained unmarried. The following passages 
from Sir Thomas Randolph, the English Ambassa- 
dor, afford interesting glimpses of life at Holyrood. 
The Queen, after a sitting of her council, was walk- 
ing with him in the garden, when she inquired, — 
" How like you this country — you have been in it a 
good space, and know it well enough ? " " My answer 
was, that the country was good, and the polity might 
be made much better." " The absence of a prince 
hath caused it to be worse — but yet, is it not like unto 
England V' I answered, " That there were many in 
the world, worse than her grace's that were thought 
right good, but I judged few better than England; 
which, I trusted, that some time after, her grace 
should witness." " I would be content therewith if my 
sister, your mistress, so liked." I said, " That it was 
the thing that many of her grace's subjects did de- 
sire, and, as I judged, would also content my mis- 
tress." 

Randolph adds : " I receive of her grace, at all 

times, very good words. I am borne in hand by such 

as are nearest about her, as the Lord James and the 

Laird of Lethington : that they are meant as they are 

6 



82 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

spoken of, I see them above all others in credit, and 
find in them no alteration ; though there he that com- 
plain, they yield too much to her appetite, which I 
see not. The Lord James dealeth according to his 
nature, rudely, homely, and bluntly; the Laird of 
Lethington more delicately and finely, yet nothing 
swerving from the other in mind and effect. She is 
patient to hear, and beareth much. The Earl Maris- 
chal is wary, but speaketh sometimes to good pur- 
pose ; — his daughter is lately come to this town : — 
we look shortly for what shall become of the long love 
betwixt the Lord James and that lady. The Lord 
John of Coldingham hath not least favor, with his 
leaping and dancing; — he is like to marry the Lord 
Both well's sister. The Lord Robert consumeth with 
love of the Earl Cassil's sister ; — the Earl Bothwell 
hath given unto him old lands of his father, in Teviot- 
dale, and the Abbey of Melross. The duke's grace * 
is come to Kinneil, and proposes not to come near to 
the court, except that he be sent for. I hear of noth- 
ing that is proposed against him ; it is thought that 
he may be well enough spared. My Lord Arran 
proposeth not to be at court so long as the mass re- 
in aineth : there come few to it, but herself, her uncle 
and train. Three causes, I perceive there are, that 
make my Lord of Arran to absent himself; the one 
is the mass ; the other, the presence of his enemy ; the 
third, lack wherewith to maintain a court. By the 
first, he maintains his credit with the precise Protes- 
tants ; the other argues less courage in him than many 
men thought, that his enemy is yet alive to have that 
place which he is unworthy of; the third manifests 

* Chatellerault. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 83 

the beastliness of his father, that more than money, 
hath neither faith nor God. The lords now begin to 
return to the court, the bishops flock apace ; the Metro- 
politan of St. Andrew's arrived here on Monday last, 
with eighty horses in train, and to be seen he rode 
half-a-mile out of his way through the High-street of 
Edinburgh ; — we know not yet what mischief he and 
his associates come for: he had with him only two 
Hamiltons." 

Though the Earl of Mar had paralyzed the strength 
of the Hamiltons in the northern districts of Scot- 
land, the Gordons were rebellious in the West. Earl 
of Huntly had planned a conspiracy against the life 
of Lethington and Earl of Mar. His son, John Gor- 
don, had aspired to Mary's hand. But in consequence 
of a duel with Lord Ogilvy, he was summoned to re- 
pair to Stirling Castle. The mandate of his Sover- 
eign he disregarded, and appeared in open revolt at 
the head of a thousand horsemen. His father, Earl 
of Huntly, having fortified the castles, took up his 
quarters in the mountains, to await the approach of 
Mary Stuart, who was making a tour to the northern 
frontier. She marched at the head of a small army, 
commanded by Earl of Mar. Reaching the Castle of 
Inverness, which was shut against her, she ordered 
an attack, followed by surrender, and the execution 
of the captain who held the stronghold. 

She displayed great heroism in this campaign, en- 
during exposure and wearisome marches, fording riv- 
ers, crossing highlands, and encamping on the deso- 
late heath ; regretting " that she was not a man, to 
know what life it was to lie all night in the fields, or 
to walk upon the causeway, with a jack and knapsack, 



84 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

a Glasgow buckler and a broadsword." After this 
expedition, she gave to her brother the earldom of 
Murray, which resulted in open war with the Gor- 
dons. The final issue was, the conquest of the Ham- 
iltons and Gordons, the farther triumph of Protes- 
tantism, and augmenting the power of Murray, who 
was virtually supreme, and ruled with no less energy 
than prudence. 

Knox was, after all, the power behind the throne, 
whom Murray and the Queen regarded as a Titan 
among reformers. He wrote of her appearance in 
Parliament : 

" Three sundry days the Queen rode to the Toll- 
booth ; the first day she made a painted oration, and 
there might have been heard amongst her' flatterers, 
' Vox Diance, the voice of a goddess ! (for it could not 
be Dei,) * and not of a woman ! — God save that sweet 
face ! Was there ever orator spoke so properly and 
so sweetly ! ' All things," he adds, " misliked the 
preachers. They spake boldly against the super- 
fluity of their clothes, and against the rest of their 
vanity, which they affirmed should provoke God's 
wrath not only against these foolish women, but 
against the whole realm. Articles were presented for 
orders to be taken of apparel, and for reformation of 
other enormities, but all was winked at." 

Mary's marriage was a subject of much speculation 
and prophecy. Knox heard that she had rejected 
the king of Sweden, and was in danger of an Austrian 
or Spanish alliance, and openly denounced her course. 
He was again summoned into her presence ; and, ac- 
* Knox had in mind Herod Agrippa I. See Acts xii : 21, 22. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 85 

companied by John Erskine, of Dun, whose temper 
and aspect would remind one in contrast with Knox, 
of Melancthon by Luther's side, he promptly obeyed 
the royal mandate. The record of the interview, as 
given by himself, is an interesting exhibition of his 
own and Mary's peculiar qualities. He affirms, that 
she immediately began to weep, and exclaim : 

" That never prince was used as she was ; ' I have/ 
said she, ' borne with you in all your rigorous man- 
ner of speaking, both against myself, and against my 
uncles ; yea, I have sought your favour by all possible 
meanes ; I offered unto you presence and audience 
whensoever it pleased you to admonish mee ; and yet 
I cannot be quit of you ; I vow to God I shall be once 
revenged ; ' and with these words scarce could Mar- 
nocke, one of her pages, get handkerchiefs to hold her 
eyes dry ; for the tears and the howling, besides wo- 
manly weeping, stayed her speech. 

" The said John did patiently abide all this fume, 
and at opportunity answered ; ' True it is, madame, 
your majesty and I have beene at diverse controver- 
sies, into the which I never perceived your majesty 
to be offended at me ; but when it shall please God to 
deliver you from that bondage of darknesse and er- 
rour wherein ye have been nourished for the lack of 
true doctrine, your majesty will hnde the liberty of 
my tongue nothing offensive; without the preaching 
place, I thinke few have occasion to be offended at 
me; and there I am not master myselfe, but must 
obey Him who commands me to speak plaine, and to 
flatter no flesh upon the face of the earth.' 

" ' But what have you to do,' said she, ' with my 
marriage ? ? 



86 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

" ' If it please your majesty patiently to hear me, 
I shall shew the truth in plain words. I grant your 
majesty offered unto mee more than ever I required, 
but my answer was then as it is now, that God hath 
not sent me to awaite upon the courts of princes, or 
upon the chamber of ladies, but I am sent to preach 
the Evangell of Jesus Christ to such as please to hear ; 
it hath two points, repentance and faith: !N^ow, in 
preaching repentance, of necessity it is that the sinnes 
of men be noted, that they may know wherein they 
offend. But so it is, that most part of your nobilitie 
are so much addicted to your affections, that neither 
God's word, nor yet their commonwealth, are rightly 
regarded; and, therefore, it becometh me to speak 
that they may know their duty.' 

u ' What have you to do with my marriage, or what 
are you within the commonwealth ? ' 

" ( A subject, borne within the same, madame ; and 
albeit I bee neither earle, lord, nor baron, within it, 
yet hath God made me (how abject that ever I bee in 
your eyes,) a profitable and a useful member within 
the same : yea, madame, to me it appertaineth no less 
to forewarn of such things as may hurt it, if I foresee 
them, than it doeth to any one of the nobility; for 
both my vocation and office craveth plainnesse of me : 
and therefore, madame, to yourselfe I say that which 
I spake in publike : Whensoever the nobility of this 
realme shall be content, and consent that you be sub- 
ject to an unlawful husband, they doe as much as in 
them lieth to renounce Christ, to banish the truth, to 
betray the freedom of this realme, and perchance 
shall, in the end, doe small comfort to yourselfe.' 

" At these words, howling was heard, and teares 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 87 

might have been seene in greater abundance than the 
matter required. John Erskine, of Dun, a man of 
meeke and gentle spirit, stood beside, and did what 
he could to mitigate the anger, and gave unto her 
many pleasant wcrds of her beauty, of her excellency, 
and how that all the princes in Europe would be glad 
to seek her favours; but all that was to cast oil into 
the flaming fire. 

" No such mitigation, however, was offered by 
Knox, who stood still, without any alteration of coun- 
tenance, and in the end said, ' Madam, in God's pres- 
ence I speak, I never delighted in the weeping of any 
of God's creatures, yea, I can scarcely well abide the 
teares of mine own boys, when mine own hands cor- 
rect them ; much less can I rejoice in your majestie's 
weeping; but seeing I have offered unto you no just 
occasion to be offended, but have spoken the truth, as 
my vocation craves of me: I must sustaine your 
majestie's teares rather than I dare hurt my con- 
science, or betray the commonwealth by silence.' 
Herewith was the Queen more offended, and com- 
manded the said John to passe forth of the cabinet, 
and to abide further of her pleasure in the chamber. 

" But in that chamber where he stood as one whom 
men had never seene (except that the Lord Ochiltree 
bare him company,) the confidence of Knox did not 
forsake him ; and, therefore, began he to make dis- 
course with the ladies, who were there sitting in all 
their gorgeous apparel ; which, when he espied, he 
merrily said, i Fair ladies, how pleasant were this 
life of yours, if it should ever abide ! and then in the 
end that wee might passe to Heaven with this geare: 
but fie upon that knave, Death, that will come whether 



88 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

we will or not ; and when he hath laid on the arrest, 
then foule wormes will bee busie with this flesh, be it 
never so faire and so tender; and the silly soule, 1 
feare, shall be so feeble, that it can neither carry with 
it gold, garnishing, targating, pearl, nor precious 
stones.' " 

Farther efforts at intimidation were made by the 
Queen in vain, and Knox left her in triumph. Soon 
after he was married to the daughter of Lord Ochil- 
tree, an interesting young lady, twenty years of age ; 
resembling, in her companionship with the Reformer, 
a bell-flower clinging to the side of an immovable 
rock. 

The question of Mary's marriage also involved the 
English interest. She wished to be declared the pre- 
sumptive heiress of Elizabeth, and on that condition 
would submit to her the choice of a husband. For 
three years, it was a matter of correspondence be- 
tween the sovereigns, and their ambassadors endeav- 
ored to make the negotiations friendly and successful. 
The English hoped to secure a Protestant alliance, 
and with it Mary's conversion from Popery. 

But while she firmly refused to sign the treaty of 
Edinburgh,* a step urged by her rival, she as little 

* The negotiations, managed on the part of Cecil with much 
skill, were completed July 6, 1560. The articles conceded, on 
the part of the French commissioners, the renunciation of all 
pretensions to the crown of England, which had been assumed 
by the king and queen of France, and a complete recognition 
of the liberty of conscience, for which the reformers had 
taken up arms ; no express recognition of the reformed wor- 
ship was stipulated, and the bishops and other churchmen 
who had received injuries were to be redressed. For nearly 
a year Mary refused to ratify this treaty. It was then taken 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 89 

thought of renouncing, under any circumstances, her 
allegiance to Rome. The Queen of England was as 
deeply hostile to nominating Mary her successor. 
While pursuing these different ends, to bring the con- 
flicting claims to a favorable termination, a personal 
meeting was proposed. When, therefore, Lethington 
returned to Edinburgh, with a kind letter from Eliza- 
beth, and her portrait, offering an interview, in the 
hope of cultivating, permanently, harmony between 
the two realms, Mary manifested great joy. With 
her natural vivacity and hopefulness, she said to Ran- 
dolph, " I trust by that time that we have spoken to- 
gether, our hearts will be so eased, that the greatest 
grief that ever after shall be between us, will be when 
we shall take leave, the one of the other. And let 
God be my witness, I honor her in my heart, and love 
her as my dear and natural sister. " 

This pledge from Elizabeth was not fulfilled. She 
was involved in the continental wars, assisting the 
Huguenots, which she pleaded in her message to 
Mary, as a sufficient reason for postponing the inter- 
view till the following summer. The disappointment 
of the Queen of Scots upon hearing the announcement 
from Sir Henry Sidney, was significant of future at- 
tempts of a similar kind. ]STor could it well be, that 
the ambitious sovereigns, so dissimilar in the whole 
outline of character, should confide in each other. 
" Both training and nature conspired to make these 
women opposites. Elizabeth's youth had been one of 
fear, and caution, and restraints, and her deportment 

up by the estate of the kingdom who assembled, at the time 
stipulated, by the treaty, without having received any com- 
mission from the queen. — Condensed from Knight 



90 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

always bore traces of this hard discipline, in its stiff- 
ness and want of grace. Mary's had been tenderly 
fostered ; she was admired and even beloved, as far as 
the denizens of that court had hearts to love. Her 
' charming nature ' could expand in all the sunshine 
of general approval — there were no cold checks shut- 
ting her up within herself; her manner was, there- 
fore, open, frank, engaging, and cordial — how should 
a prosperous, joyous beauty's ever be otherwise ? But 
it was only an accomplishment, formed not by the 
heart so much as by external circumstances. She had 
no need in her youth for habitual circumspection, and 
her general demeanor was the gainer by it." 

During the winter of 1563, Mary dispatched Leth- 
ington to the court of Elizabeth, to gain her favor 
towards the princes of Lorraine, and assert the right 
of succession, if the question should be agitated. 
Mary's temperament, and unfortunate education, 
were never more conspicuous than at this period, 
while vital questions to herself and her kingdom were 
pending. She abandoned herself to all the amuse- 
ments and pleasures of a gay court. Music, dancing, 
falconry, poesy, and gallantries were the variety of 
life in the palace of Holyrood. In vain Knox mounted 
his pulpit to denounce the midnight festivities of roy- 
alty. He complained, " that princes are more exer- 
cised in fiddling and flinging, than in reading or hear- 
ing of God's most blessed word. Fiddlers and flat- 
terers who commonly corrupt the youth, are more 
previous in their eyes than men of wisdom and grav- 
ity, who, by wholesome admonition might beat down 
in them some part of the vanity and pride whereunto 
all are born, but in princes take deep root and strength 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 91 

by wicked education." Mary's dissipation, naturally 
enough, engaged her in unhappy attentions from em- 
boldened admirers. 

A Captain Hepburn was so familiar and indelicate 
in his advances, that he escaped punishment only by 
flight. Chastelard, a poet and musician from Dau- 
phiny, became a lover. He addressed poems to the 
beautiful Queen, to which, by proxy or otherwise, she 
replied ; she allowed private visits in her cabinet 
more frequently than to any of her nobility; and by 
other expressions of peculiar regard, intoxicated him 
with passion. One evening he ventured to conceal 
himself under her bed, and upon his discovery, Mary 
ordered him to leave the court forever. Instead of com- 
pliance with the command, the infatuated lover fol- 
lowed her into Fife, whither she had gone on a tour to 
the North, and again concealed himself in her apart- 
ment. In a glow of indignation, she ordered Murray 
to kill Chastelard on the spot. But the calmer states- 
man put him under arrest for more deliberate condem- 
nation. Two days later he walked to the scaffold, re- 
citing Ronsard's hymn to death ; and when he stood 
ready for the fatal blow, he raised his eyes to Heaven 
and exclaimed, " O cruelle dame ! ,: The wide-spread 
and deep sensation produced by this tragical affair, 
which, whatever the desert of " the mad lover," tar- 
nished Mary's reputation, urged upon her the neces- 
sity of marriage. Amid the many politic offers of an 
alliance, Elizabeth about this time proposed, through 
her ambassador, Randolph, Lord Robert Dudley, son 
of the Duke of Northumberland. He had wisely 
governed England under Edward VI., but presented 
no inducement to Mary Stuart, unless her haughty 



92 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

rival would secure the right of succession. Besides, 
another suitor more promising to her ambition, and 
more pleasing to her fancy, entered the field of this 
matrimonial tournament. Lord Henry Darnley was 
the son of the Earl of Lennox, a refugee in England 
for having joined the cause of Henry VTIL, who 
married Lady Margaret Douglas, daughter of Mar- 
garet Tudor, widow of James IV. Connected thus 
with the royal families of both England and Scot- 
land, and a young gentleman of very fine personal ap- 
pearance and elegant manners, Darnley was a favor- 
ite with the Queen. His mother had, since Mary's 
return, been secretly planning for her son's promo- 
tion, unconscious that it would be his ruin. Lennox 
was invited to resume the lands and honors which he 
had forfeited and abandoned in Scotland ; Elizabeth 
consented, and the earl arrived on his ancestral do- 
main, September, 1564. Mary lavished her favors 
upon him, though it excited anew the displeasure of 
the Hamiltons, his bitter enemies. Mary determined, 
after consulting him, before a final resolution on the 
subject, to ascertain more fully Elizabeth's views of 
her prospective marriage, and the two suitors. She 
therefore dispatched James Melvil, a finished diplo- 
matist, a scholar, and an accomplished gentleman, to 
the English court. Elizabeth, whose vanity was as 
proverbial as her policy, received Melvil with every 
mark of distinction. He was a guest of Lady Straf- 
ford, the Queen's confidant — Elizabeth entertained 
him with her music, and danced in his presence. He 
displayed his tact and talent in the reply to the ques- 
tion, the color of whose hair was reputed best — that 
of her own or of the Queen of Scotland ? He an- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 93 

swerecl that " there was no one in England compara- 
ble to her, and no one in Scotland so beautiful as 
Mary Stuart." She was not satisfied with so equivocal 
a compliment, and Melvil assured her, she excelled 
Mary in complexion, music and dancing. Such flat- 
teries reached the proud heart of Elizabeth. She 
kissed the portrait of Mary Stuart, and smiled bright- 
ly on Melvil. He, however, assured her, that Lord 
Robert Dudley would fail of winning the hand of his 
sovereign. She replied excitedly, " Lord Robert is 
my best friend ; I love him as a brother, and I would 
myself have married him, had I ever minded to have 
taken a husband. But being determined to end my 
life in virginity, I wished that the Queen, my sister, 
might marry him, as meetest of all others with whom 
I could find it in my heart to declare my succession. 
For being matched with him, it would best remove 
out of my mind all fears and suspicions to be of- 
fended by any usurpation before my death; being 
assured that he is so loving and trusty, that he would 
never permit any such thing to be attempted during 
my time. And that the Queen, your mistress, may 
have the higher esteem of him, I will make him, in a 
few days, Earl of Leicester, and Baron of Denbigh." 
Soon afterward Elizabeth fulfilled her pledge, and 
with her own hand placed the coronet of an earl upon 
his brow, and when the splendid ceremonies were 
over, she turned to Melvil and asked his opinion of 
Dudley. He replied, ei that as he was a worthy ser- 
vant, so he was happy who had a princess who could 
discern and reward good service." Pointing to Darn- 
ley, who, as nearest prince of the blood, bore the 
sword of honor, she added, " Yet you like better yon- 



94 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

der long lad." With a courtier's deceptive speech, he 
told her " that no woman of spirit would make choice 
of such a man, who was more like a woman than a 
man, for he was handsome, beardless, and lady-faced." 

During repeated interviews, Elizabeth affirmed 
that if Mary would marry Lord Dudley, the matter 
of succession would be arranged. She said " that it 
was her own resolution to remain till her death, a 
virgin Queen, and that nothing would compel her to 
change her mind, except the undutif ul behavior of the 
Queen, her sister." Melvil records, that upon his de- 
parture for Scotland, " she used all the means she 
could to oblige me to persuade the Queen, my mis- 
tress, of the great love she did bear unto her, and that 
she was fully minded to put away all jealousies and 
suspicions, and in times-coming to entertain a stricter 
friendship than formerly." The conclusion seems 
inevitable, that Elizabeth was patriotic as well as am- 
bitious, and the glory of England was more attrac- 
tive than the heartless mockery of love in a royal mar- 
riage. It doubtless would have been her choice, that 
Mary should live single like herself, and this policy 
entered into her proposal of Lord Dudley, who, she 
must have known, would have been rejected without 
the condition of the renewed succession to the Queen 
of Scots. 

The following letter is an interesting review of the 
events which have been related: 

THE QUEEN OF SCOTS TO THE ARCHBISHOP OF GLAS- 
GOW.* 

" From Lislebourg, 2nd November, 1564. 
" Monsieur de Glasgow, the bearer of this, has 
* James Beathon, or Bethun, or Beaton, the last Catholic 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 95 

begged so earnestly to be taken into my service, that, 
without considering his youth, as I had before done, 
I would not let him set out without this short letter, 
in which I shall give you much news, referring to that 
which I have commanded him to say relative to the 
appointments of the Duke,* and of the Earl of Len- 
nox, for the doing of which the more easily, it was 
necessary that this duke should resign to you the pro- 
vostship of Glasgow, agreeably to the promise which 
he made you. I assured him that you would assent 
either to my disposing of it, or reserving it for you, 
being certain that, at my request, and for my service, 
you would at any time give it back to the said Earl 
of Lennox, as the bearer will tell you ; also about the 
return of Melvil, whom I sent to the Queen, my good 
sister, with an apology for some letters which I had 
written to her, and which she considered rather rude ; 
but she took the interpretation which he put upon 
them in good part, and has since sent me Randolph, 
who is here at present, and has brought me some very 
kind and polite letters, written by her own hand, con- 
taining fair words, and some complaints that the 

Queen f and her ambassador, had 

assured her that I had published in mockery propo- 

Archbishop of Glasgow, fled from Scotland when the Catholic? 
religion fell into disrepute, and retired to France, where he 
acted as ambassador for Mary, and her son James VI., for the 
period of twenty years. He died in Paris in 1G03, at the age 
of 86. 

* The Earl of Arran, created Due de Chatellerault, by the 
King of France. 

f Catherine, Queen of France. 



96 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

sals which she had made me to marry Lord Bobert.* 
I cannot imagine that any of those over there could 
wish to embroil me so much with her, since I have 
neither spoken to anybody, nor written respecting 
this proposal, not even to the Queen, who, I am sure, 
would not have borne such testimony against me ; 
but I have thought of writing about it to M. de Foix, 
and to Baptiste. In the meantime, if you hear any- 
thing, talk to him on his return from England ; let 
me know, but do not mention a word about what I 
am writing to you to any one whatever. 

" For the rest, I shall hold the Parliament on the 
5th of next month, for the sole purpose of reinstating 
the Earl of Lennox in his possessions, and afterwards 
I shall not fail to dispatch to you a gentleman, w T ho 
w r ill acquaint you with all that has occurred, more at 
length than I can inform you at present. Meanwhile 
I beg you to answer the letters I wrote to you by 
Holland, and give me a circumstantial account of all 
the news where you are. I conclude at present, rec- 
ommending myself heartily to you, praying God to 
give you his grace. 

" Your very kind mistress and friend, 

" Mary R." 

At the beginning of the year 1565, Mary Stuart, 
having retired to St. Andrews for an interlude to the 
cares of the palace, Randolph visited her there at the 
repeated solicitation of Elizabeth. He has given a 
sketch of the interview. 

" Her grace lodged in a merchant's house ; her 
train was very few ; and there was small repair from 
any part. Her will was, that, for the time that I did 

* Lord Robert Dudley, afterward Earl of Leicester. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 97 

tarry I should dine and sup with her. Your majesty 
was oftentimes dranken unto bv her, at dinners and 
suppers. Having in this sort continued with her 
grace Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday, I thought it 
time to take occasion to utter that which last I re- 
ceived in command from your majesty, by Mr. Sec- 
retary's letter ; which was to know her grace's resolu- 
tion, touching those matters propounded at Berwick 
by my Lord of Bedford and me, to my Lord of Mur- 
ray, and Lord of Liddington ; I had no sooner spoken 
these words, but she saith, k I see now well that you 
are weary of this company and treatment ; I sent for 
you to be merry, and to see how like a Bourgeoise wife 
I live, with my little troop, and you will interrupt our 
pastime with your great and grave matters; I pray 
you, sir, if you be weary here, return home to Edin- 
burgh, and keep your gravity and great embassade 
until the Queen come thither ; for I assure you, you 
shall not get her here, nor I know not myself where 
she is become; you see neither cloth of estate, nor 
such appearance that you may think there is a Queen 
here; nor I would not that you should think that I 
am she at St. Andrews, that I was at Edinburgh. 7 

" I said that I was very sorry for that, for that at 
Edinburgh she said that she did love my mistress, the 
Queen's majesty, better than any other, and now I 
marveled how her mind was altered. It pleased her 
at this to be very merry, and called me by more 
names than were given me at my christening. At 
these merry conceits much good sport was made. 
1 But well, sir,' saith she, ' that which then I spoke in 
words shall be confirmed to my good sister, your mis- 
tress, in writing ; before you go out of this town you 

7 



98 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS 

shall have a letter unto her, and for myself, go where 
you will, I care no more for you.' The next day I 
was willed to be at my ordinary table, being placed 
the next person (saving worthy Beaton *) to the 
Queen's self. 

" Very merrily she passeth her time : after dinner 
she rideth abroad. It pleased her the most part of 
the time to talk with me ; she had occasion to speak 
much of France, for the honor she received there ; to 
be wife unto a great king, and for friendship shown 
unto her in particular, by. many, for which occasions 
she is bound to love the nation, to show them pleas- 
ure and to do them good. 

" Her acquaintance is not so forgotten there, nor 
her friendship so little esteemed, but yet it is divers 
ways sought to be continued. She hath of her peo- 
ple, many well affected that way, for the nourriture 
that they have had there, and the commodity of ser- 
vice, as those of the guard, and men at arms ; besides, 
privileges great for the merchants, more than ever 
were granted to any nation. What privately, of long 
time, hath been sought, and yet is, for myself to yield 
unto their desires in my marriage, her majesty cannot 
be ignorant, and you have heard. To have such 
friends, and see such offers (without assurance of as 
good,) nobody will give me advice that loveth me. ISTot 
to marry, you know, it cannot be for me : to defer it 
long, many incommodities ensue. How privy to my 
mind, your mistress hath been herein ; how willing I 
am to follow her advice, I have shown many times, 

* Mary Beaton, who, from her infancy, had been a maid of 
honor. She was the niece of Cardinal Beaton. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 99 

and yet can I find in her no resolution nor determina- 
tion. For nothing, I cannot be bound unto her ; and 
to France, my will against her. I have lately given 
assurance to my brother of Murray and Liddington, 
that I am loath, and so do now show unto yourself, if 
your mistress did, as she hath said, use me as her nat- 
ural born sister or daughter, I will show no less read- 
iness to oblige and honor her than my elder sister or 
mother ; but, if she will repute me always but as her 
neighbor, Queen of Scots, how willingly soever I be 
to live in amity, and to maintain peace ; yet must she 
not look for that at my hands, that otherwise I would, 
or she desireth. To forsake friendship offered, and 
present commodity for uncertainty, no friend will 
advise me, nor your mistress herself approve my wis- 
dom. Let her, therefore, measure my case as her 
own, and so will I be to her. For these causes, until 
my sister and I have further proceeded, I must apply 
my mind to the advice of those that seem to tender 
most my profit, that show their care over me, and 
wish me most good." 

At this crisis, Darnley, a youth of nineteen, joined 
his father in Scotland. The motives which governed 
Elizabeth in permitting him to leave her realm, are 
not certainly known. It is most natural, certainly, to 
suppose, that while continental princes were expec- 
tant of success, and Darnley's presence could not 
make matters worse ; she also granted the request as 
a condescension to him. The young lord was a 
shrewd dissembler, and a captivating suitor. He 
placed himself under Murray's guidance — in the 
morning went to hear Knox preach, and in the even- 



L.cf C. 



100 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

ing danced a gilliard with Mary. The Protestant 
church he would thus conciliate, and also secure the 
favor of the court. Educated a Catholic, he was 
neither a devotee of Rome, nor an adherent of Knox. 
But Murray was not so easily won. 

From this moment the struggle began between the 
two candidates of the Reformers and Catholics ; be- 
tween Leicester, who was supported by Lethington 
and Murray — and Darnley, who was strongly sus- 
tained by the Earl of Athol, all the Scottish barons 
who had remained faithful to their ancient creed, and 
an Italian named David Rizzio, who had succeeded 
Raullet as the Queen's Secretary for French corre- 
spondence, and who had already gained great influ- 
ence over her. Lethington, at this time, wrote to 
Cecil a number of letters, full of the most polite con- 
siderations, in favor of a marriage which he thought 
might be so useful to their common cause and their 
two countries, and besought him to obtain from Eliz- 
abeth that concession which alone was needed to en- 
sure its success. But Elizabeth complained that this 
was transforming the negotiation too much into a 
matter of bargain, and jocularly told Melvil, that 
Lethington, in his constant allusions to the succession, 
was, like a death-watch, ever ringing her knell in her 
ears. Lethington replied that his mistress merely 
sought a probable reason to lay against the objections 
of foreign princes, that they might see that no vain 
or light conceit had moved her to yield to the Queen 
of England's request in her marriage. As for him- 
self, giving way to an enthusiasm which was far from 
habitual in him, he reminded Cecil of the union of 
England and Scotland, which would be effectuated by 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 101 

this marriage, in language full of noble patriotism. 
" Such a stroke of policy/ 7 he remarked, " would 
secure for us a more glorious memory, a more unfad- 
ing gratitude in the ages to come, than belongs to 
those who did most valiantly, serve king Edward the 
First in his conquest, or king Robert, the Bruce, in 
his recovery of the country." 

Murray took a similar view, and urged the claims 
of Lord Dudley. If Elizabeth was ambitious in re- 
fusing to nominate her sister successor, Mary was no 
less aspiring in rejecting Dudley, if the English 
crown prospectively were not made the premium of 
acceptance. A definite declaration becoming neces- 
sary, Elizabeth directed Randolph to communicate to 
Mary Stuart, her decision not to recognize the right 
of succession in any emergency; but if the Earl of 
Leicester were accepted as such, she would have no 
cause to repent the confidence reposed in her munifi- 
cence. When the message was delivered, the Queen 
of Scots wept long and violently. The storm passed, 
and Mary's feelings and purpose turned toward Darn- 
ley. She admired him, and there was probably more 
affection indulged than she had known toward any 
other lover since Francis died. The step was one of 
collision with Murray, who opposed the marriage, and 
developed the opposition of the Protestant party, with 
the hostility of the Hamiltons, foes of Lennox ; while 
Elizabeth saw in it a probable alliance with the Cath- 
olic powers of Europe, which would array against 
her the subjects of her own realm who maintained 
the Romish faith. Mary having settled the choice of 
a husband, addressed herself to the work of reducing 
the strength of opposers. She recalled from France 



102 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

the dissolute Earl of Both well, to confront Murray, 
whom he intensely hated, and proposed the restora- 
tion of Earl Huntly, whose family Murray had dis- 
graced. She likewise endeavored to convert her 
brother to her plans, by commanding his return to 
the court from which he had withdrawn, and de- 
manding his signature to a paper approving her mar- 
riage. This he refused, and gave reasons of state 
and church policy. Mary was indignant, and with- 
out sufficient ground, charged him with aiming his 
rebellion at her crown. The result was open war be- 
tween them. 

Murray appeared in Edinburgh with five or six 
thousand men, to procure BothwelPs condemnation, 
and entered into a league with the Duke of Chatelle- 
rault and Earl of Argyle for mutual aid and de- 
fence. He conferred with the Protestant clergy con- 
cerning their protection, and applied, through Ran- 
dolph to Elizabeth, for whatever help she might be 
willing to afford. The choice of Darnley had been de- 
clared in the Privy Council of the Queen of England, 
" prejudicial to both Queens, and consequently dan- 
gerous to the weal of both countries." She sent 
Throckmorton to carry to Mary Stuart that opinion, 
and once more propose Lord Dudley. When he 
reached Scotland, it was quite too late to interfere. 
She had not only watched at the sick bed of Darnley, 
but on the 1st of May, 1565, she announced to a con- 
vention of the nobility, which she had called for the 
purpose, her intention of marrying him. The meas- 
ure was approved unanimously ; and she then added 
to Darnley's honors, the lordship of Ardmanoch, and 
the earldom of Ross. She replied to Throckmorton's 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 103 

message : " As to her good sister's great dislike to 
the match, this was, indeed, a marvelous circum- 
stance, since the selection was made in conformity to 
the Queen's wishes, as communicated by Mr. Ran- 
dolph. She had rejected all foreign suitors, and had 
chosen an Englishman, descended from the blood 
royal of both kingdoms, and the first prince of the 
blood in England ; and one whom she believed would, 
for these reasons, be acceptable to the subjects of both 
realms." 

Mary postponed the wedding, if possible, to pro- 
pitiate her powerful neighbor, and avoid a hopeless 
alienation. Elizabeth was enraged, and sent the 
Countess of Lennox, Darnley's mother, who was still 
in England, to the Tower, and summoned the Earl 
and his son to return. Lennox refused, until assured 
of the Queen's favor. Darnley replied to the mes- 
senger, with more spirit: "I do now acknowledge 
no other duty or obedience but to the Queen here, 
whom I love and honor; and seeing that the other, 
your mistress, is so envious of my good fortune, I 
doubt not but she may have need of me, as you shall 
know within a few days. Wherefore to return I in- 
tend not ; I find myself very well where I am, and 
so purpose to keep me; and this shall be your an- 
swer." 

Elizabeth assured the Reformers of her support, 
who made a desperate effort to prevent the marriage. 
The General Assembly of the Scottish Church met 
at the call of Knox and Earl of Argyle, and resolved 
to petition the Queen for the abolition of mass, and 
uniformity of the established religion throughout her 
kingdom. She conceded their right to maintain di- 



104 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

vine worship as they desired, but claimed the same 
toleration toward himself. While she calmed the 
fears of many, Murray, whose whole nature was in a 
glow of indignation, in which blended the fires of hate 
to Popery and personal enemies, and the apprehen- 
sion to peril to both church and state, headed a plot to 
surprise Mary and Darnley, on their way from Perth 
to Callendar — either kill, or deliver him to the Eng- 
lish — imprison Mary, and reinstate Murray. The 
conspiracy was detected, and the only alternative 
was a general revolt. 

Murray called the people to arms, and Mary sum- 
moned the vassals of the crown to assemble immedi- 
ately at Edinburgh, prepared for war. She issued a 
proclamation, designed to keep the church tranquil, 
and for the first time attended at Callendar, the ser- 
vices of a Presbyterian minister, and heard the gos- 
pel from what she deemed heretical lips. This was a 
sacrifice of conscience, to prevent an uprising of the 
Reformers to join the rebellious nobles. She felt the 
need of haste, to remove inducements to opposition, 
and creating Darnley Duke of Albany, she received, 
July 2 2d, a dispensation from the Pope of Rome, 
making legal her marriage with a cousin, and ap- 
pointed Sunday, the 29th, as the day for the nuptials. 
The preceding day she gave Darnley the title of King, 
which completely intoxicated his brain, and he began 
to show his consciousness of authority. Wise men 
shook their heads at the strides the " long lad " was 
making. 

The Sabbath had scarcely dawned when, between 
five and six o'clock, Mary, in her rich mourning ap- 
parel, and the noble form of Darnley, entered the 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 105 

royal chapel of Holyrood. The Dean of Restabrig 
performed the ceremony ; the Queen, after the matri- 
monial salutation from Darnley, kneeled at the altar 
to hear mass, while he retired to the chase — avoiding, 
by this movement, the increased suspicion of the 
Protestants. Upon reaching her palace, Mary put off 
the sable attire and appeared in magnificent bridal 
robes. A banquet followed. The Earls Athol, Mor- 
ton, Crawford, Eglington and Carsilles, were table at- 
tendants. Money was scattered among the gathered 
populace, and the scene concluded with dancing and 
festivity. Darnley flaunted in kingly splendor, and 
Mary Stuart dreamed of a glorious future, as the 
silence of morning succeeded " music's voluptuous 
swell," and the hum of excited guests — a brief and 
delusive vision ! 



CHAPTEK IV. 

Mary's marriage to Lord Darnley was a decisive 
stroke in her destiny — the glory-gilded summit, from 
which her descent to a sea-girdled prison began. The 
friendly correspondence that had for four years ex- 
isted between the Queen of Scots and Elizabeth, 
closed ; and a hostility commenced, which necessarily 
involved their kingdoms. Murray had not been idle, 
during the hymenial festivities of his sister. He 
wrote to the Earl of Bedford, to " crave his comfort, 
as of one to whom God had granted to know the subtle 
devices of Satan, against the innocent professors of 
the gospel, to stir up the powers of the world against 
the same." Randolph urged Elizabeth to aid Mur- 
ray, " unless she wished to see Protestantism, and the 
English party in Scotland, fall together." She had 
said to the revolutionists, " Keep your sovereign by 
all lawful means from doing wrong, and you shall 
have all the help which I can give you, but it is no 
part of a subject's duty to oppose her by force." The 
assistance offered was scarcely more than a small sum 
of money, leaving the insurgents to their own re- 
sources. Meanwhile, the bride and bridegroom has- 
tened preparations for the campaign. In the capital, 
" the swash, the taborin, and the drum, were stricken 
through the streets, to raise recruits for the army." 

Mary marched forth to meet the enemy. Darnley 
rode by her side in " gilded armor," the Earl of Len- 

106 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 107 

nox lead the army, Chancellor Morton commanded 
the centre, and the King and Queen, attended by Par- 
son Balfour, David Rizzio, and another Italian mu- 
sician, brought up the rear. This force moved so rap- 
idly against Murray, that he was. compelled to fly 
from Stirling to Glasgow, and thence into the domain 
of his ally, the Earl of Argyle. Mary sent back the 
English envoy, Tamworth, dispatched by Elizabeth 
with a " haughty message," who, leaving a spirited 
reply, was intercepted by a band, because he refused 
to acknowledge Darnley king, and was carried a pris- 
oner to Hume Castle. The fugitive Reformers had 
no alternative but to collect their available strength 
and march to Edinburgh, the metropolis of the realm, 
and the stronghold of Protestantism. With a thou- 
sand men Murray reached the capital, expecting a 
general uprising of the people. To his amazement, 
there was no sympathy displayed ; none came to his 
standard, and his ranks were fired upon by the ord- 
nance of the castle. The citizens, whatever their op- 
position to Catholicism, were not prepared to rise in 
rebellion against their beautiful Queen. 

Another appeal by the party in revolt was made to 
Cecil, the Queen's adviser, and the Earl of Bedford, 
who commanded the English army on the frontier, 
for three thousand men, and ships of war, to cruise 
in the Forth. Elizabeth delayed, and Mary im- 
proved the time. She assembled a force of ten thou- 
sand men, and swept Murray's adherents from Edin- 
burgh, like leaves in the hurricane's path. She then 
marched into the county of Fife, and taught submis- 
sion to the offending barons. Her perfect form on a 
dashing charger, with pistols at her saddle bow, and 



108 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

a glow of intense excitement on her lovely face, made 
the Queen of Scots a strangely fascinating object, 
amid the evolutions of a conquering host. But there 
were stormy passions beneath. Pursuing to Dum- 
fries the departed Earl of Murray, retreating toward 
the English border, she declared to Randolph that she 
would rather peril her crown than lose her revenge. 

Leaving her routed foe, she communicated in a let- 
ter to the Archbishop of Glasgow, in France, her 
plans, and view of the civil war. 

THE QUEEN OF SCOTS TO THE ARCHBISHOP OF GLAS- 
GOW. 

" From Lislebourg, 1st October, 1565. 

" Monsieur de Glasgow : I am greatly astonished ; 
for a very long time I have received no tidings from 
you, not even Mauvissiere, who calls himself ambas- 
sador from the King. I beg you will let me hear of- 
tener from you. As for any news here, you must 
know that Mauvissiere was commissioned to treat 
preliminarily between me and the Queen, my neigh- 
bor. This I willingly agree to ; but as to treating 
with my subjects, having conducted themselves as 
they have done, I had rather lose all. 

" Now, I am sure, you must have heard enough 
upon this subject from your brother, and since, from 
Chalmer: and there is nothing of very recent occur- 
rence, but that they are getting worse and worse, and 
are now at Dumfries, where they have resolved to 
stay until I leave this place, which will be to-morrow, 
and then they will go, as I am informed, to Annan, 
which they propose to defend against me with the aid 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 109 

of three hundred English arquebusiers of the garrison 
of England: and they boast that they shall receive 
more succors, both by sea and land, so as to be able to 
make head against our army, which is to set out to- 
morrow, or the next day at the latest, and with which 
the King and I intend to go in person, hoping that, 
the time of the proclamation having expired, we shall 
retire and give them time to wait for the army of the 
Queen of England, which is to be ready next spring. 
Urge the Queen as often as you can, and by all the 
means in your power, to send us men and money in 
this emergency, and then write forthwith what I have 
to hope for : and beware, above all things, of exciting 
the jealousy of a certain person whom you know, and 
with whom you must privately use the like persua- 
sions. Something was known at court about your 
dealings with Bay. 

" I shall write you more fully on the first opportu- 
nity; but above all, keep a good look-out, and see if 
my rebels hold any secret communication over there 
with the Protestants, or Chatillon ; and if the Duke 
and Earl of Murray have any agent about the Queen, 
whom you may assure that they have full liberty of 
conscience, and that this is not the motive which in- 
fluences them, nor the public welfare ; for I have 
made no changes in the order of things to which they 
have themselves consented ; and if they were not at 
the council, it has been because I never could get 
them to come to it after my marriage, except a few, 
who, after taking part against them, subsequently 
went over to their side, which they now begin to re- 
pent of, and among others the duke and Gudo, . . . 
who have sent me word to that effect. 



HO MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

" Yesterday, Dromleveriel and Lowener sent to me 
to beg pardon, saying they would serve us, assuring 
me they had forsaken them, finding their intentions 
so different from what they represented. The traitor 
Maxwell is deeply ashamed of having so basely broken 
his faith with me ; he does not appear disposed to send 
his son to England as an hostage, not having forgot- 
ten how his last was treated ; this he sent me word 
himself. In short, when England perceives that we 
have ever so little succor to hope for, they will draw 
back, I should think, from seeing those people so dis- 
heartened. You will see the memorandum which I 
have given to the bearer, of what he is to say to the 
king, instead of instructions. Tell me how he ac- 
quits himself of his commission, for I assure you he is 
more English than Scotch. Here I conclude, pray- 
ing God to grant you a happy and long life 

" Your very good mistress and friend, 

" Mary R" 

She expressed her estimate of the rebels fully, in a 
proclamation issued at this crisis of affairs. 

" Certain rebels, the authors of this uproar lately 
raised up against us, have given the people to under- 
stand that the quarrel they have in hand is only reli- 
gion, thinking with that cloak to cover their ungodly 
designs, and to draw after them a large train of ig- 
norant persons, easy to be seduced Their am- 
bition could not be satisfied with heaping riches upon 
riches, and honor upon honor, unless they retain in 
their hands, us, and our whole realm, to be led, used, 
and disposed at their pleasure. We must be forced 
to govern by counsel, such as it shall please them to 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. HI 

appoint us — and what other thing is this, but to dis- 
solve the whole policy, and (in a manner) to invert 
the very order of nature, to make the prince obey, 
and subjects command. The like was never de- 
manded by any of our most noble progenitors hereto- 
fore, yea, not of governors and regents. When we our- 
selves were of less age, and at our first returning into 
this our realm, we had free choice of our council at 
our pleasure, and now, when we are at our full ma- 
turity ; shall we be brought back to the state of pupils, 
and be put under tutory ? This is the quarrel of re- 
ligion they made you believe they had in hand ; this 
is the quarrel for which they would have you hazard 
your lands, lives, and goods, in the company of a cer- 
tain number of rebels, against your natural prince. 
To speak in good (plain) language, they would be 
kings themselves, or at the least, leaving to us the bare 
name and title, and take to themselves the credit and 
whole administration of the kingdom." 

She concluded with a promise of security to their 
possessions, and liberty of conscience, on condition 
of loyalty to their sovereign. A final entreaty was 
sent by the insurgents to Elizabeth, to save the im- 
periled church, and deliver the persecuted, who were 
exposed to Mary's displeasure, they affirmed, through 
the baneful influence of Rizzio and Darnlev, both 
foreigners, assuming without right or the consent of 
the people, authority in the cabinet and over the 
kingdom. She had ordered troops and money to be 
placed at the command of Murray; but a few days 
later, hearing of his defeat, countermanded the order 
and abandoned the cause, with an expression of lively 
sympathy. The English Queen was cautious and art- 



112 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

ful, with a steady eye upon the glory of her realm, 
and the proud distinction of reigning alone. 

Mary Stuart having gained the ascendancy, no 
longer disguised her wishes and plans. Under the 
direction of her secretary, Rizzio, she began to plot 
the restoration of the Romish faith. Darnley united 
with her in an application to Philip II., of Spain, 
and the Pope, for aid in the undertaking, justifying 
their cause by the applications made already to Eliza- 
beth. Her letter to Philip discloses her intentions. 

THE QUEEN OF SCOTS TO KING PHILIP II. 

" To the King of Spain. 

" Monsieur my good brother — the interest which 
you have always taken in the maintenance and sup- 
port of our Catholic religion, induced me some time 
since to solicit your favor and assistance, as I foresaw 
what has now taken place in the kingdom, and which 
tends to the utter ruin of the Catholics, and to the 
establishment of those unfortunate errors, which, 
were I and the King my husband to oppose, we should 
be in danger of losing our crown, as well as all pre- 
tensions we have elsewhere, unless we are aided by 
one of the great princes of Christendom. 

( ' Having duly considered this, as likewise the con- 
stancy you have displayed in your kingdoms, and 
with what firmness you have supported, more than 
any other prince, those who have depended on your 
favor, we have determined upon addressing ourselves 
to you, in preference to any other, to solicit your ad- 
vice, and to strengthen ourselves with your aid and 
support. To obtain this, we have dispatched to you 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 113 

this English gentleman, a Catholic, and a faithful ser- 
vant of the King, my husband, and of myself, with 
ample directions to give you an account of the state 
of our affairs, which he is well acquainted with ; and 
we beg you to believe him as you would do ourselves, 
and to send him back as soon as possible ; for occasions 
are so urgent, that it is of importance both for the 
crown and the liberty of the church; to maintain 
which we will risk our lives and our kingdom, pro- 
vided we are assured of your assistance and advice. 

" After kissing your hands, I pray God to give you, 
monsieur my good brother, every prosperity and fe- 
licity. Your very good sister, 

" Mary K." 

This monarch, who was the royal head of Papacy 
in Europe, sent, in reply to her solicitation, twenty 
thousand crowns,* and wrote to the Pope, who added 
eight thousand more. This pontiff expressed his re- 
grets that he could not then offer any other assistance, 
and also said that the hope of asserting, by armed 
force, Mary's right of succession to the throne of 
England must not be renounced, and gives the reason : 
" This project concerns the cause of God, which is 
mentioned by the Queen of Scotland, since it is evi- 
dently the only door by which religion can enter into 
the kingdom of England, for all others are now shut." 

Refusing mediation offered by Castelnau de Mau- 
vissiere, the French ambassador, Mary affirmed in a 
proud speech, " I would rather lose all than treat with 

* The English crown of the present day is worth $1.21. In 
the sixteenth century the value varied somewhat, but was 
generally worth a little less than that of to-day. 

8 



114: MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

my subjects," and a third time, October 9th, accom- 
panied by Both well and Huntley, marched with about 
twelve thousand men toward Dumfries, to expel the 
remnant of the revolutionary party. Murray's small 
force was routed at the first onset, and he fled into 
England on the 14th of the same month. The Queen 
of Scots was victorious, and in the giddiness of ele- 
vation, she resorted to vengeance. She determined 
to condemn as traitors the rebel lords, and with 
the sympathy of the English Catholics, she thought 
to make even the haughty Elizabeth repent of 
whatever encouragement she had given the insur- 
gents. She incautiously remarked to some of her no- 
bles, who expressed a fear that her continual riding 
and much exposure to storms, would prove exhausting 
— " That she would never cease to continue in such 
fatigues, until she had led them into London." Her 
tone became dictatorial to Elizabeth, who in turn was 
surprised and perplexed. The Spanish and French 
ambassadors at her court, increased her embarrass- 
ment by defending Mary's interests. Elizabeth col- 
lected troops on the frontier, and summoned promi- 
nent Catholic nobles in council, the real motive of 
which was, apprehension that they were favorable to 
the designs of her now resolute and enthusiastic rival. 
To calm Mary's displeasure, she also affected indig- 
nation towards Murray, and made him publicly deny 
that he had received the least aid from her in the re- 
bellion. Then addressing him in the presence of the 
French ambassador, she said, angrily : 

" It is well that you have told the truth ; for 
neither did I, nor any one else in my name, ever en- 
courage you in your unnatural rebellion against your 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 115 

sovereign ; nor, to be mistress of a world, could I 
maintain any subject in disobedience to his prince; it 
might move God to punish me by a similar trouble 
in my own realm ; but as for you two, ye are unwor- 
thy traitors, and I command you instantly to leave 
my presence." 

There is a consistency in this with the rule Eliza- 
beth had before given, in respect to the duty of sub- 
jects. It is not certain that she favored the uprising 
of the people as designed by Murray, however she 
desired to prevent a marriage she disliked, or feared 
Mary's pretensions. The Queen of Scots was advised 
to be merciful to her foes, as a matter of policy at 
least, to increase her power, and avoid occasion of fur- 
ther complaint with Elizabeth. But passion ruled the 
sovereign, and following the advice of her foreign 
relatives, she planned the death of offenders, by con- 
demnation, at the meeting of the next Parliament. 

David Rizzio, since he came to Mary's court, in 
1562, in the suite of the Count of Moretto, the Savoy 
ambassador, had been gaining ascendancy over the 
Queen. From the office of valet, he rose to that of 
private secretary in 1564, on the removal of Raulet. 
He was now at the zenith of influence in the palace. 
" The greater part of the affairs of the kingdom 
passed through his hands. He managed them with so 
much prudence, and brought them to so satisfactory 
a conclusion, that he was greatly beloved by her 
majesty." Gorgeous in equipage and style of living, 
flattered and caressed, he became haughty and pre- 
sumptuous. Mary's reputation was injured by his 
singular influence and royal living. Elizabeth, com- 
plaining of Murray's presumption, said, " That it 



116 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

was all owing to an Italian named David, whom the 
Queen of Scotland loved and favored, and granted 
more credit and authority than were authorized by 
her affairs and honor." 

Rizzio was in the pay of the Pope, and urged Mary 
to severity towards the rebels. Darnley meanwhile 
had been losing the confidence and affection of the 
Queen. Sir William Drury wrote to Secretary Cecil, 
in the following strain : 

" All people say that Darnley is too much addicted 
to drinking. 'Tis certainly reported there was some 
jar betwixt the Queen and him, at an entertainment 
in a merchant's house in Edinburgh, she only dis- 
suaded him from drinking too much himself, and en- 
ticing others ; in both which he proceeded, and gave 
her such words that she left the place with tears; 
which they that are known to their proceedings, say 
is not strange to be seen. These jars arise, amongst 
other things, from his seeking the matrimonial crown, 
which she will not yield unto ; the calling in of the 
coin, wherein they were both, and the duke's (of Cha- 
tellerault) finding so favorable address; which hath 
much displeased both him and his father. Darnley 
is in great misliking with the Queen ; she is very 
weary of him ; and, as some judge, will be more so 
ere long ; for true it is, that those who depend wholly 
upon him, are not liked of her ! nor they that follow 
her, of him ; as David Rizzio, and others ; some say 
she likes the duke better now than formerly ; so some 
think, that if there should be the quarrel betwixt her 
and Darnley, which she could not appease, that she 
will use the duke's aid in that affair. There also 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. H7 

have arisen some unkind speeches about signing let- 
ters : he, immediately after his marriage, signing 
first, which she will not allow of now. His govern- 
ment is very much blamed, for he is thought to be wil- 
ful and haughty, and some say vicious; whereof too 
many were witnesses, the other day at Juchkeith, with 
the Lord Robert, Fleming, and such like grave per- 
sonages." 

The arrogant Darnley had repeatedly urged Mary 
to confer upon him the crown matrimonial; that is 
to say, an equal share in the government of the realm, 
which was granted to Francis II., her first husband. 
She steadily refused the request, because she despised 
his inefficiency, and had lost whatever affection she 
entertained for him at an early period of their ac- 
quaintance. The disappointed Darnley, jealous of 
Rizzio's familiar friendship for Mary, and seeing a 
domestic war inevitable, charged his own failure and 
her displeasure upon the Italian secretary. He was 
the captive of ambition stimulated by that demoniac 
passion,* which, " is the rage of a man ; therefore he 
will not spare in the day of vengeance." The purpose 
was formed, to remove the hated object, and disclosed 
to his cousin George Douglas. He also sent Douglas 
to confer with Lord Ruthven, concerning his griefs, 
and plans of revenge. The assassination of Rizzio, 
and seizing the matrimonial crown, were leading de- 
signs of the conspiracy. 

Lord Ruthven was an invalid, but after a brief 
visitation, consented to the plot, which was made 
known to Lord Lindsay and Randolph. The latter 
* Jealousy. See Proverbs vi : 34. 



113 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

wrote on the subject to Leicester ; from it this passage 
is quoted : 

" I know now for certain, that this Queen repent- 
eth her marriage; that she hateth him (Darnley) 
and all his kin. I know that he knoweth himself that 
he hath a partaker in play and game with him. I 
know that there are practices in hand, contrived be- 
tween the father and son to come by the crown against 
her will. I know that if that take effect which is in- 
tended, David, with the consent of the King, shall 
have his throat cut within these ten days. Many 
things grievouser and worse than these are brought to 
my ears ; yea, of things intended against her own per- 
son, which, because I think better to keep secret than 
write to Mr. Secretary (Cecil), I speak not of them 
but now to your lordship." 

The conspiracy progressed secretly, and no suspi- 
cion of evil darkened the horizon of Rizzio's hopes. 
The friends of Mary and Lennox had united against 
Murray; and now the adherents of Lennox sought a 
coalition with the party in revolt, to make the blow 
aimed at the crown successful. The Earl of Morton, 
a relative and warm friend of Murray, was a Protes- 
tant, and Chancellor of the Kingdom. The retaining 
of his lucrative and honorable office was motive suffi- 
cient to induce him to act as the leader of the enter- 
prise. He was equal to the emergency. " To obtain 
the concurrence of the principal ministers and most 
powerful persons of the Reformed party; to bring 
back the exiles, and to restore to them the authority 
which they had lost ; to secure the support of Eliza- 
beth and her chief ministers, Cecil and Leicester; to 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. HO 

murder Rizzio; to dissolve the Parliament, about to 
be convoked for the purpose of legally consummating 
the ruin of the fugitive lords ; to imprison the Queen ; 
to confer the nominal sovereignty upon Darnley; to 
rejjlace Murray at the head of the government : such 
was the plan conceived by Morton, and adopted in 
Scotland by Lords Lindsay, Ruthven, and Lething- 
ton, by Knox and Craig, the two ministers of Edin- 
burgh, Bellenden, the justice-clerk, Makgill, the 
clerk-register, and the lairds of Brunston, Calder, and 
Ormiston. The Earl of Lennox himself proceeded to 
England to communicate it to Murray, Rothes, Glen- 
cairn, Grange, and Ochiltree, the father-in-law of 
Knox, who readily embraced it, and agreed to repair 
to the frontier, so as to be ready to return to Edin- 
burgh as soon as the plot had succeeded." 

This daring and comprehensive conspiracy was 
expressed in two solemn covenants, embracing both 
the King and the instruments of his ambition. The 
former set forth Darnley's determination to protect 
the Queen's honor, by seizing the abusers of her 
" gentle and good nature," and with the assistance of 
certain of the nobility and others, if those enemies of 
the realm resisted, " to cut them off immediately, 
and to slay them wherever it happened." The King 
was committed to the defence of his confederates at 
all hazards. The latter obligation bound the actors in 
the bloody plot, to the support of Darnley in his am- 
bitious schemes against all his enemies. 

Randolph and Earl of Bedford wrote to Elizabeth's 
secretary on the 6th of March, 1566, a full and most 
confidential account of the matured conspiracy. They 
said: 



120 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

" You have heard of divers discords and jars be- 
tween this Queen and her husband, partly for that 
she hath refused him the crown matrimonial, partly 
for that he hath assured knowledge of such usage of 
herself, as altogether is intolerable to be borne, which 
if it were not overwell known, we would both be very 
loath to think that it could be true. To take away 
this occasion of slander, he is himself determined to 
be at the apprehension and execution of him whom 
he is able manifestly to charge with the crime, and to 
have done him the most dishonor that can be to any 
man, much more being as he is. 

" If persuasions to cause the Queen to yield to 
these matters do no good, they propose to proceed 
we know not in what sort. If she be able to make 
any power at home, she shall be withstood, and her- 
self kept from all other counsel than her own nobility. 
If she seek any foreign support, the Queen's majesty, 
our sovereign, shall be sought, and sued unto to 
accept his and their defence, with offers reasonable to 
her majesty's contentment. These are the things 
which we thought and think to be of no small impor- 
tance ; and knowing them certainly intended, and con- 
cluded upon, thought it our duties to utter the same 
to you, Mr. Secretary, to make declaration thereof as 
shall seem best to your wisdom. 



» 



Elizabeth offered no opposition to the intrigue. 
Mary was altogether in happy ignorance of it. She 
had seen the disaffection of the nobility toward Riz- 
zio, and bitterly reproached them for a selfish refer- 
ence to their own family glory, without regard to her 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 121 

choice of " a man of low estate, poor in means, but 
generous in mind, faithful in heart, and well adapted 
to fill an office." 

The general fast of the Reformed church, which 
had commenced March third, gathered to Edinburgh 
the principal clergy and laymen, among whom Knox 
and Craig preached on topics adapted to the condi- 
tion of affairs. Oreb, and Zeeb, and Haman,* were 
held up as examples of divine justice falling upon the 
heads of guilty princes and their ungodly favorites. 
The conspirator fixed upon Saturday evening, March 
9th, for the closing act of the tragedy. The fatal day 
dawned and waned as usual in the palace, until eight 
o'clock, when Darnley, who had supped earlier than 
was his custom, went by a private staircase to Mary's 
apartments, when she was at tea with Lady Argyle, 
her sister, her brother, Earl of Orkney, Areskine, 
master of her household, her physician, and Rizzio. 
The court-yard was thronged with armed men, and 
the shout of " A Douglas ! — a Douglas ! " reached the 
Queen's ears ; she was in a delicate condition, and 
trembled with alarm ; but before she could ask the 
cause of the outcry, Ruthven, clad in a suit of armor, 
and ghastly with lingering disease, broke into the 
room. Mary recoiled from the spectre; the dying 
conspirator exclaimed : 

" Let it please your majesty that yonder man, 

* Oreb and Zeeb were two princes of Midian who were slain 
by the Ephraimites after Gideon's great victory. See Judges 
vii : 25. Haman was hung upon the gallows he had caused 
to be erected for the execution of his enemy, Mordecai. See 
Esther, chapter vii. In those days both preachers and states- 
men were much given to justifying their ways by drawing 
historical parallels from the Old Testament. 



122 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

David, come forth of your privy-ch amber, where he 
hath been over long." 

The Queen answered, " What offence hath he 
done ? " 

Ruthven replied " that he made a greater and more 
heinous offence to her majesty's honor, the King her 
husband, the nobility, and commonwealth." 

" And how ? " said she. 

" If it would please your majesty, he hath offended 
your honor, which I dare not be so bold as to speak 
of. As to the King your husband's honor, he hath 
hindered him of the crown matrimonial, which your 
grace promised him ; besides many other things which 
are not necessary to be expressed, and hath caused 
your majesty to banish a great part of the nobility, 
and to forfeit them, that he might be made a lord. 
And to your commonwealth he hath been a common 
destroyer, hindering your majesty to grant or give 
anything but what passed through his hands, by tak- 
ing of bribes for the same ; and caused your majesty 
to put at the Lord Ross for his whole land, because he 
would not give over the lands of Melvin to the said 
David, besides many other inconveniences that he 
solicited your majesty to do." Then the Lord Ruth- 
ven said to the King, *' Sir, take the Queen your wife 
and sovereign to you," who stood all amazed, and 
knew not what to do. 

" Then her majesty rose upon her feet and stood 
before David, he holding her majesty by the plaits of 
her gown, leaning back over the arch of the window, 
his dagger drawn in his hand : meanwhile, Arthur 
Areskin, and the Abbot of Holyrood-House, and the 
Lord Keith, master of the household, with the French 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 123 

apothecary, and one of the chamber, began to lay 
hands on the Lord Ruthven, none of the King's party 
being there present. Then the said Lord Ruthven 
pulled out his dagger, and defended himself until 
more came in, and said to them, ' Lay no hands on 
me, for I will not be handled.' At the coming in of 
others into the cabinet, the said Lord Ruthven put 
up his dagger, and with the rushing in of men, the 
board fell into the wall, meat and candles being there- 
on." 

Poor Rizzio cried out in broken language, " I am 
killed ! " begging piteously for her protection. Amid 
the awful confusion, during which the Queen fainted, 
the terrified secretary was dragged through Mary's 
bed-room into the entrance of her presence chamber, 
where, in spite of Morton's wish to keep him until the 
next day and hang him, George Douglas, seizing the 
King's dagger, stabbed him, saying loudly that it was 
the royal blow. His comrades rushed on, and did not 
leave the bleeding form, until it was pierced with 
fifty-six wounds.* The body was thrown out of the 
window into the court-yard, and carried to the por- 
ter's lodge. Mary, upon regaining her self-possession, 
was aware from circumstances that attended the mur- 
der, of her husband's connection with it, and indig- 
nantly reproached him with these words: " My Lord, 
why have you caused to do this wicked deed to me, 
considering that I took you from low estate, and made 
you my husband ; what offence have I given you that 
you should do me such shame ? " Ruthven records 

* Rizzio's blood-stains are to this day pointed out upon the 
floor of Mary's chamber in Holyrood palace. 



124 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

that he replied he had good reason, for since the Ital- 
ian's familiarity with her, she had not " regarded, 
entertained, or trusted him after her wonted fash- 
ion." Mary replied, " My Lord, all the offence that 
is done me, yon have the wite thereof, for the which 
I shall be your wife no longer, nor lie with you any 
more, and shall never like well till I cause you to have 
as sorrowful a heart as I have at this present." 

After a tumult in the palace, made by an effort to 
expel the King's party, Ruthven left her majesty's 
presence, and upon his return, she inquired after Riz- 
zio's fate. Receiving no direct answer, the following 
conversation took place, as given by the resolute lord 
who was on the confines of the grave : 

" What offence or default have I committed, to be 
thus treated ? " 

" Inquire of the King, your husband." 

" J^ay, I will inquire of you." 

" Madam, if it would please your majesty to re- 
member, that you have for this long time, a number 
of perverse persons, and especially one David, a 
stranger, an Italian, who ruled and guided the coun- 
try without advice of the nobility and council ; and 
especially against those peers that were banished." 

{i Were you not one of my council ? Why would 
you not declare, if I did aught amiss ? " 

" Because your majesty would not listen, in all the 
time your majesty was at Dumfries, but whenever 
you called your council together, did things by your- 
self, and your privy persons : albeit, your nobility suf- 
fer the pains and expense." 

" Well, you find great fault with me ; I will be 
content to set down my crown before the lords of the 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 125 

articles,* and if they find that I have offended, to 
give it where they please." 

" God forbid, madam ; but who chose the said lords 
of the articles ? " 

" Not I." 

" Saving your majesty's reverence, you chose them 
all in Seaton, and nominated them ; and as for your 
majesty's council, it hath been suffered to wait full 
long: and what was done, it behooved them to say it 
was your majesty's pleasure, and the lords of the 
articles. Your majesty first chose such as would say 
whatsoever you thought ; and now, when the lords of 
the articles have sitten certain days, reasoning if they 
could find any principal cause why they should be 
forfeited? No, madam, not so much as one point, 
except false witness, be brought against them." 

Darnley sent forth a proclamation to the magis- 
trates of the city, that Protestants alone should be 
allowed to leave their houses ; and the next day dis- 
charged the Parliament. This murder deprived 
Mary of a devoted and valuable servant, shook her 
sceptre, and wounded her honor. The night following 
was one of extreme agony. The pale and perfect 
features of the beauty were bathed in tears during the 
silence of midnight, while the victim of her partiality 
was in a dreamless sleep, " life's fitful fever " over. 
Mary, virtually a prisoner in her palace had entered 

* The Lords of Articles prepared all the matters which were 
to be laid before Parliament ; and they not only directed its 
proceedings, but possessed a negative before debate. It should 
be remembered that a Scottish Parliament consisted of great 
barons, ecclesiastics, and a few representatives of boroughs ; 
they composed but one Assembly, over which the Lord Chan- 
cellor presided. 



126 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

the penumbra of the total eclipse, which, with delu- 
sive prelude of brightness, would soon bring " the 
days of darkness." 

Ruthven's savage manner awakened Mary's fears 
for her own safety. Unexpectedly seeing Melvil, she 
desired him to apprize Murray that he would be 
freely pardoned, on the condition of protecting her 
life and liberty. 

The Earls of Huntley and Bothwell, hearing of 
Murray's expected return, and apprehending danger 
to themselves, escaped from the windows of the palace 
by means of a cord, which let them down into the open 
fields. Other lords who were at Holy rood, followed 
the example, and fled. Mary placed her hope of de- 
liverance mainly in Darnley, who at length sought 
her presence. Finding her calm amid all the fierce 
agitation around her, he related the particulars of the 
successful conspiracy. The following is the Queen's 
record of the closing scenes described : 

" After this deed, the said Lord Ruthven, coming 
again in our presence, declared how they and their 
accomplices were highly offended with our proceed- 
ings and tyranny, which was not to them tolerable; 
how he was abused by the said David, whom they had 
actually put to death ; namely, in taking his counsel 
fbr maintenance of the ancient religion ; debarring 
the lords who were fugitive, and entertaining amity 
with foreign princes ; putting, also, upon counsel the 
Lords Bothwell and Huntley, who were traitors, and 
with whom he associated himself ; that the lords ban- 
ished in England were that morn to resort to us, and 
would take plain part with them in our controversy, 
and that the King was willing to remit them their of- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 127 

fences. We all this time took no less care of our- 
selves, than for our council and nobility, to wit, the 
Earls Huntley, Bothwell, Athol, Lords Fleming and 
Livingston, Sir James Balfour, and certain others, 
our familiar servitors, against whom the enterprise 
was conspier, as well as for David : and, namely, to 
have hanged Sir James; yet, by the providence of 
God, the Earls of Bothwell and Huntley escaped at a 
back window by some cords; the conspirators took 
some fear, and thought themselves disappointed in 
their enterprise. The Earl of Athol and Sir James 
Balfour, by some other means, with the Lords Flem- 
ing and Livingston, obtained deliverance. The pro- 
vost and town of Edinburgh having understood this 
tumult in our palace, caused to ring their common 
bell, came to us in great number, and desired to have 
seen our presence, and communed with us ; and to 
have known our welfare ; to whom we were not per- 
mitted to give answer, being extremely boasted by 
their lords, who in our face declared, if we desired to 
have spoken them, they should cut us in collops, and 
cast us over the walls. Our brother, the Earl of Mur- 
ray, that same day at even, accompanied by the Earl 
of Rothes, Pitarrow, Grange, and others, came to us, 
and seeing our state, was moved with natural affec- 
tion towards us ; upon the morn he assembled the en- 
terprizers of the late crime, and such of our rebels as 
came with him. In their council they thought it most 
expedient that we should be warded in our Castle of 
Stirling, there to remain till we had approved, in 
Parliament, all their wicked enterprizes, established 
their religion, and given to the King the crown mat- 
rimonial and the whole government of our realm, or 



128 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

else by all appearance prepared to put us to death, or 
detain us in perpetual captivity." 

When Murray entered Mary's apartment, she em- 
braced him, and weeping, said, " Had you been here, 
I should not have been so treated." He was moved to 
tears, and taking her arm, while Darnley walked also 
in company, she discoursed of her sorrows. Of the 
result of an interview with the apparently repentant 
King, she writes : " We declared our state to the 
King, our husband, certifying him how miserably he 
would be handled if he permitted the lords to prevail ; 
and how unacceptable it would be to other princes, 
our confederates, in case he altered the religion. By 
this persuasion he was induced to condescend to the 
purpose taken by us, and to retire to Dunbar. We 
being minded to have gotten ourselves relieved of this 
detention, desired Earls of Bothwell and Huntley to 
have prepared some way whereby we might have es- 
caped ; who, not doubting therein at least, taking no 
regard to hazard their lives in that behalf, desired 
that we should have come over the walls of our palace 
in the night, upon chairs, which they had in readiness 
to that effect soon after." 

Thus, Darnley, after having opened the series of 
royal treacheries and scenes of bloodshed, and grasped 
the reins of authority, in his weakness, yielded to the 
grief of the fascinating captive. With mutual con- 
fessions, Darnley was reconciled, the Queen forgiv- 
ing, and the conspirators abandoned. His next move 
was to effect her escape. He informed his devoted 
associates that the Queen was attacked with a fever, 
which required a change of air ; at the same time ex- 
pressing her readiness to pardon them for past of- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 129 

fences. They were suspicious of the design, and cau- 
tioned Darnley. But he repeated his confidence in 
her honor. She wished them to prepare articles of 
security, which she would sign. Having no better al- 
ternative, they complied ; and at midnight, March 
11th, Mary Stuart, Darnley, and Arthur Erskine, 
her captain of the guard, fled from Holyrood, and 
dashed away on fleet horses to the Castle of Dunbar. 
It was an ominous night ; that Queen, her subdued 
yet haughty husband, and a single guard, flying in the 
stillness and gloom of night from the Avails, within 
which stood a vacant throne ! 

Upon her arrival at Dunbar, she issued the sum- 
mons to her nobility to meet her arms. The conspir- 
ators had discovered that the articles of safety were 
left without her signature, and dispatched Lord Tem- 
ple to demand a fulfillment of her pledge. He waited 
three days for an answer, during which she had as- 
sembled an army collected by Bothwell, Huntley, and 
others. On the 16th she issued a proclamation, de- 
nouncing the leaders in the late sanguinary transac- 
tions, and to strengthen her cause, conciliated Mur- 
ray, Argyle, Glencairn and Rothes, on condition of 
refusing any sympathy with the murderers of the 
secretary. The objects of her hate, the hunted rebels, 
were Morton, Ruthven, Lindsay, George Douglas, 
Andrew Ker of Fandonside, and sixty-five other 
lairds or gentlemen, whom she ordered to appear, and 
answer for their crime. She then marched upon the 
capital, where they were. On her approach, they 
escaped to England, and she once more entered the 
city of an outrage, which had kindled a glow of ven- 
geance in her passionate heart. The Earl of Lennox 
9 



130 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

was forbidden to appear at her court ; Lethington was 
deprived of office ; Joseph Rizzio, brother of David, 
was appointed private secretary ; honors were paid to 
the dead ; and the accessories of the murder, guards of 
the gates, and other subalterns, were condemned to 
death. Her intense fervor of revenge reached some 
who were wholly unconnected with the assassination. 
Darnley was compelled to deny any interest in the 
conspiracy, by a public declaration, in which he 
speaks of the wicked persons who had implicated him 
in " the late cruel murder, committed in presence of 
the Queen's majesty, and treasonable detaining of her 
majesty's most noble person in captivity." " His 
grace," he added, " for the removing of the evil opin- 
ion which the good subjects may be induced to con- 
ceive, through such false reports and seditious rumors, 
hath, as well to the Queen's majesty as in the presence 
of the lords of secret council, plainly declared upon 
his honor, fidelity, and the word of a prince, that he 
never knew of any part of the said treasonable con- 
spiracy whereof he is slanderously and falsely ac- 
cused, nor never counseled, commanded, consented, 
assisted, nor approved the same." 

His accomplices were naturally enough fired with 
indignation at his treachery. To have incited them 
to hazard all for the augmenting of his power, and to 
gratify his jealousy, and then to betray them coolly to 
the wrath of the injured sovereign, was treason below 
the ambition of a demon. They turned upon the 
traitor, by transmitting to Mary the bonds which he 
had signed, in contemplation of securing the matri- 
monial crown, and dispatching Rizzio. These cove- 
nants dispelled all doubt on the Queen's mind re- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 131 

specting the deliberate, premeditated guilt of her hus- 
band, and opened an impassable gulf of alienation 
and disgust between her and himself. She despised 
him as a conspirator, a coward, and a liar. 

Melvil records in his memoirs : " The Queen la- 
mented unto me the King's folly, ingratitude, and 
misbehavior ; I excused the same the best I could, im- 
puting it to his youth, which occasioned him to be 
easily led away by pernicious counsel, laying the 
blame upon George Douglas, and other bad counsel- 
lors ; praying her majesty, for many necessary con- 
siderations, to remove out of her mind any prejudice 
against him, seeing that she had chosen him herself 
against the opinion of many of her subjects. But I 
could perceive nothing from that day forth but great 
grudges that she entertained in her heart." 

Mary's hatred to Darnley, appeared in gradually 
excluding him from all participation in public affairs, 
and entrusting responsible offices to Earl of Bothwell, 
Huntley, Athol, and the Bishop of Ross ; transferring 
with undissembled designs, his honors and powers to 
her favorites. 

As the time of her confinement approached, the 
Queen, suspicious, because of former plots against 
her, that unexpected advantage might be taken of her 
condition, removed to Stirling Castle, where, while 
a child, she had been crowned, and where she was 
about to become a mother — a responsibility and 
honor, transcending the diadem of royalty. On the 
19th of June, 1566, between nine and ten o'clock in 
the morning, was born a son, whose brow was destined 
to wear the united crowns of the rival sovereigns.* 
* James VI. of Scotland and I. of England. 



132 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

Melvil was immediately dispatched to Elizabeth, to 
announce the event, and request her " to act as god- 
mother to the Prince of Scotland." The English 
Queen was in the midst of a magnificent ball, which 
she had given to her court at Greenwich, when Cecil, 
secretary of state, entered the crowded and brilliant 
ball. She was dancing when he whispered the tidings 
in her ear. A shade passed, like a storm-cloud over 
the landscape, across her flushed and kindling feat- 
ures. The magic whirl suddenly ceased, and sinking 
with a sigh into an arm-chair, she said to the ladies 
near her person, " that the Queen of Scots was mother 
to a fair son, while she was but a barren stock." She 
soon regained her accustomed self-control, and the fol- 
lowing day she received Melvil with a smile, express- 
ing joy at the advent of a prince, and thanking him 
for bringing her the pleasing intelligence. She also 
assured him, that she " gladly condescended to be a 
gossip to the Queen." 

" She immediately sent Sir Henry Killegrew to 
congratulate the Queen of Scotland on her behalf, to 
assure her of her friendship, and to express her ap- 
probation of her conduct towards Rizzio's murderers, 
whom she had nevertheless granted an asylum in her 
dominions." 

Darnley wrote the following letter, upon the birth 
of his son : 

KING HENRY DARNLEY TO MONSIEUR THE CARDINAL 

DE GUISE. 

" From the Castle of Edinburgh, this 19th 
day of June, 1566, in great haste. 

" Sir, my uncle : having so favorable an opportu- 
nity of writing to you by this gentlemen, who is on the 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 133 

point of setting off, I would not omit to inform you 
that the Queen, my wife, has just been delivered of a 
son ; which circumstance, I am sure, will not cause 
you less joy than ourselves ; and also to inform you 
how, on this occasion, I have, on my part, as the 
Queen my said wife, has also on hers, written to the 
king, begging him to be pleased to oblige and honor 
us by standing sponsor for him, by which means he 
will increase the debt of gratitude I owe him for all 
his favors to me, for which I shall always be ready 
to make every return in my power. 

" So having nothing more agreeable to inform you 
of at present, I conclude, praying God, monsieur, my 
uncle, to have you always in his holy and worthy 
keeping. 

" Your very humble and very obd't nephew, 

" Henry R." 

The message of instructions from Charles IX. of 
France, to his special messenger to the Queen of Scot- 
land, throws light on the passing events : 

INSTRUCTIONS GIVEN TO THE SR. DE MAUVISSIERE * 
ON A MISSION FROM THE KING OF FRANCE TO SCOT- 
LAND. 

" The Sr. de Mauvissiere, whom the king is now 
sending to Scotland, will, on passing through Eng- 
land, wait upon the Sr. de la Forest, his ambassador, 
and accompany him, to present to the Queen of the 

* Michael Castelnau Seigneur de Mauvissiere was frequently 
employed in diplomatic missions, and was in 1575 appointed 
French ambassador in London, which post he held for six 
years. 



134 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

aforesaid England the letters which their majesties 
have written to her; and say that, having sent him 
to Scotland, it is their wish that, in passing through 
the kingdom, he should wait upon her, and present in 
their names, their most affectionate respects, from the 
desire they have not to omit toward her anything that 
mutual friendship demands ; and which their majes- 
ties wish not only to perpetuate, but to augment by 
all the means possible, as well as by every act of kind- 
ness. And, at the same time, the said Sieur de Mau- 
vissiere will assure the said lady, that the perfect 
friendship the king bears her is so strong and so sin- 
cere, that all the concern and affairs of the said lady 
interest him as much as his own, and that he ardentlv 
desires to prove the sincerity of his affection, rather 
by deeds than by words. 

" That the reason for which he is going to Scotland 
is to congratulate, in the name of their majesties, the 
said Queen of the aforesaid Scotland, on her happy 
delivery, and that God has given her a son, which 
news was very agreeable to them, as they also pre- 
sume that it will have given the greatest joy to the 
said lady. 

" That his stay will be so short, that, if it please the 
said lady, to commission him to say anything on her 
part to the Queen of Scotland, he will deliver the mes- 
sage faithfully, and bring her an answer in a few 
days. 

" Having performed the above duty to the said 
Queen of England, he will see the Duke (earl) of Lei- 
cester, and say to him that their majesties continuing 
to entertain for him the same good-will they have al- 
ways hitherto done, it is their wish that Sr. de la 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 135 

Forest should assist him in every way he can in re- 
gard to his marriage, and to make such offers as he 
will repeat, of which the duke will judge if they can 
he useful to him, or in any way facilitate and promote 
the conclusion of it ; and that, if it be agreeable to him 
to make known his intentions to the said Sr. de la 
Forest, or the Sieur de Trochmortin, D. Guillerey, or 
any other whom he may think proper, he will find that 
they will proceed more expeditiously than the Sieur* 
de Foix, his predecessor ; having been commanded so 
to do by their majesties, who desire that the Sieur de 
la Forest will inform them of this in his own name, 
and contract the closest private familiarity with the 
said Sieur de Trochmortin, Guillerey, or any other 
whom the duke may choose to employ, to procure him 
information, and assist him in the prosecution of his 
undertaking in such manner as the said duke may 
intimate that he has occasion for. That the said Sr. 
de Mauvissiere, on arriving in Scotland, shall first 
visit the Queen of that kingdom, and after delivering 
to her the letters of their majesties and their affec- 
tionate remembrances, he is to congratulate her on 
her happy delivery, and its having pleased God to 
give her a son, assuring her their majesties received 
the news with the greatest joy, and will be still hap- 
pier to learn that the mother and infant are as well as 
can be desired. 

"Besides he has letters to the King, her husband, 
to express the like congratulation to him, but also 
with the express command not to do anything in this 
matter but what the said lady should think fit, and to 
use such language to him as she may deem proper and 
order. 



136 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

" That he has also letters of introduction to differ- 
ent gentlemen of that country; that if the said lady 
considers it serviceable to her that he should hold any 
language to them on the part of their majesties, he 
must do so ; being, when all is said, expressly com- 
manded to do nothing but by her advice, and conduct 
himself, in all respects, as may be for the interest of 
her affairs, according as she may direct him. 

" And if, inasmuch as the said Sieur de Mauvis- 
siere says he thinks the said Queen of Scotland will 
ask what assurance he brings her of the assistance she 
is to expect from the king in her affairs, in men or 
money, if the said lady should speak to him on this 
subject, he is to reply as follows : 

" That monsieur the Cardinal of Lorraine, having 
acquainted their majesties that the said lady had need 
of money, and seeing that, from the state of his finan- 
ces, he could not spare any of his own, had begged 
their majesties to furnish him with the sixty thou- 
sand livres * which were due of his pension, and 
which their said majesties would have done most will- 
ingly; but there not being sufficient ready money in 
the hands of the treasurer to furnish him with the 
said sum, the said treasurer had rendered himself re- 
sponsible in his own private name toward those from 
whom the said sieur the cardinal should obtain the 
said sum, which their majesties think that he would 
not fail to remit to the said lady, knowing she had 
need of it. And the said lady must not doubt, that if 
his majesty had had as much money at his command 
as good-will to assist the said lady, she would always 
find his purse open and at her service. 

* The livre was worth 19£ cents. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 137 

" As to sending succors in men, their majesties 
have been informed from various sources, that the af- 
fairs of her kingdom are at present in such a state of 
peace and tranquillity as not to require it, and that 
she, to whom God had given so fine and promising an 
heir, is so much revered and obeyed, that they think 
her most important object will be to reconcile' her sub- 
jects to each other, if there yet remains any enmity 
among them on account of the past, and to preserve 
peace and tranquillity in her dominions ; and for this 
reason they have not thought it necessary to give any 
instructions on this head to the Sieur de Mauvissiere, 
that on his return he may be able to report the same 
to their said majesties, who will always do, in favor 
and for the assistance of the said lady, whatever she 
can promise herself and expect from princes, who are 
her best and most sincere friends in this world. 

" His majesty is much gratified by the favor which 
the said lady has done him, by having chosen him as 
one of his sponsors ; and, being desirous of gratifying 
and obliging her to the utmost of his power, begs her 
to inform him which of the princes of his kingdom or 
other seigneurs will be most agreeable to her to hold 
her son at the holy font of baptism in his name; as 
the one whom she may name and select, his majesty 
will immediately dispatch on receiving from her this 
information." 

Mary looked upon her first born with more than 
maternal affection ; ambitious hopes gave a glow of 
intense interest to her pale and beautiful face. The 
subjection of foes, and the right of succession in Eng- 
land, were associated with the earliest glance of the 



138 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

infant's wandering eye. She little thought that her 
idol would cost her a throne, and as a result, tears 
numberless as the drops of morning dew. 

The education of the prince was a question of im- 
mediate concern. The Protestant leaders assembled 
in the High * Church to offer public thanksgiving for 
the Queen's safety, and resolved to urge that her son 
should be nurtured in the evangelical faith. 

" For this purpose a congratulatory deputation 
from the General Assembly, headed by the superin- 
tendent of Lothian, communicated to the Queen the 
prayers of her subjects, that she would be graciously 
pleased to allow their prince to be reared in the true 
faith. Unfortunately for Mary, she discovered not 
how much it imported, even to her personal safety, to 
acquiesce in this demand; — more unfortunately still, 
she allowed herself to believe, that both in Scotland 
and England, the ancient worship was ultimately to 
be restored. In each country the number of Catholics 
had lately increased, and she well knew that in 
France, Spain, and Italy, a league existed for the ex- 
tirpation of heretical principles. With these internal 
convictions, Mary scrupulously abstained from a 
promise, not only revolting to her conscience, but in- 
compatible with her foreign engagements ; unwilling, 
however,at such a moment, to cause displeasure to her 
subjects, she ordered the infant prince to be presented 
to the deputies, and with her wonted grace, placed him 
in the arms of the superintendent. Charmed with 
this affability, the minister uttered a prayer for the 

* St. Giles was in common speech known as High Church. 
It is situated at the head of High street, near the castle which 
crowns the hill. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 139 

babe's future honor and prosperity, and, at the con- 
clusion, extorted from the child a certain responsive 
murmur, to signify that he pronounced, Amen. 
Mary, now in her turn delighted, with genuine ex- 
pressions of maternal fondness, thanked the minis- 
ter, sportively calling him good Mr. Amen, an appel- 
lation by which he was ever after distinguished." 

The exciting question of the succession was again 
revived, according to Mary's orders, by Melvil, who 
addressed Elizabeth on the subject. The Queen of 
Scotland effected a union between Murray, Argyle, 
and Lethington, to secure the influence of the Protes- 
tant party in England ; while the same policy brought 
together Bothwell, Huntley, Athol, and the Bishop of 
Ross, to control the Catholic power, in the attain- 
ment of her cherished and growing aspirations. In 
the midst of those reconciliations and favorable nego- 
tiations with the lairds, who led the Presbyterian 
body, the radical Catholics interposed, by a foolish 
claim of Elizabeth's sceptre in Mary's behalf. 

Patrick Adamson, a Scotchman, published in Paris 
a Latin work, in which she was called Queen of Eng- 
land, and her son, Prince of Scotland, England and 
Ireland. This fully aroused Elizabeth. Parliament, 
which had been debating the transmission of the 
crown for several days, she summoned before her, 
and with a stern rebuke, unfolded the dangers of ap- 
pointing a successor beforehand, with these words : 
" I am your natural Queen, and although you show 
yourselves so adverse to my will in this affair, I will 
not consent to its being carried farther." The lower 
house still persisted in the discussion, until Elizabeth 
commanded peremptorily, a cessation of further con- 



140 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

sideration of the unpleasant and hopeless question. 
Referring angrily to Adamson's volume, in a mes- 
sage to Mary, she said : " You know, madam, that 
there is nothing in the world which so much concerns 
my honor as that there should be no other Queen of 
England but myself." 

This unsettled condition of rival claims continued, 
while Mary entered on a more dangerous experiment. 
James Hepburn, the Earl of Bothwell, was a daring, 
impetuous, and dangerous man. The owner of large 
estates — by marriage he had united one of the most 
influential families of the South, with the most pow- 
erful family in the l^orth of Scotland. Lady Jane 
Gordon had been his bride but a few months, when, 
during the summer of 1566, Mary Stuart cherished a 
fatal passion for the earl. Unblushing in his vices, 
and fearless in his wildest schemes, his heroism and 
bold ambition won the admiration of Mary, who felt 
burdened by the presence of the weak and unreliable 
Darnley. Bothwell aimed to secure her affection and 
share her sovereignty. He was chivalrous, though 
neither handsome nor truly refined ; and to an ardent 
woman, his dashing independence and extravagant 
devotion, were qualities that obscured the vices of 
dissipation, and unscrupulous plans of personal eleva- 
tion. The Queen, before she was aware, was an un- 
resisting victim of his fascinating power. His in- 
fluence over her, and in the court, alarmed the youth- 
ful King, and he began to look for a protecting party. 
He sought to enlist the Catholic church, and wrote 
the Pope, charging the Queen with indifference to 
the progress of the ancient faith. In an excursion to 
Alloa, on the banks of the Eorth, it is recorded, that 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 141 

upon the restoration to Mary's favor of the Laird 
of Lethington, on that occasion, Darnley, who hated 
him, in a passion left the party and hastened to Edin- 
burgh. Mary soon followed to meet Mauvissiere, 
who had arrived from France with the congratulatory 
message from Charles IX. The ambassador acted as 
mediator, and apparently succeeded in making a rec- 
onciliation between the alienated parties. For sev- 
eral weeks civility and tranquillity marked their 
intercourse. Darnley accompanied the Queen and 
ladies of the palace, in a tour to the Western High- 
lands, but before the royal expedition closed, he be- 
came more irritable and insulting than at any former 
period. Mary's female companions did not escape 
the ebullitions of his anger. He finally withdrew to 
a private house, and refused decidedly to attend Mary 
to the capital. In his melancholy musings he resolved 
to abandon his country, and wander, self-exiled, a des- 
olate and neglected being, who could publish, with 
the sympathy of all, the story of his wrongs. This 
was revenge that he knew would wound the Queen 
deeply ; her pride and sensibility would be keenly 
stung. A ship was ready to convey him to France, 
when his father visited him and wrote immediately 
to Mary Stuart at Edinburgh, to communicate her 
husband's intention, and his own inability to change 
the King's purpose. 

The same day that she received the letter of the 
Earl of Lennox, awakening the apprehension that 
Darnley had already sailed from Scotland, he arrived 
at Holyrood. His vacillating nature had dismissed 
the desperate design of a departure, for the endeavor 
to renew confidence and harmony with Mary. She 



142 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

at once assembled her council, invited the French am- 
bassador, De Croc, to be present, while an explana- 
tion was demanded of the King, of his strange plans. 
Darnley was taken by surprise, for, instead of an 
amicable settlement of difficulties, he was brought to 
the tribunal of accusation and inquiry. To the ques- 
tioning of the lords he was silent. De Croc assured 
him his projected voyage and absence involved the 
Queen's honor and his own, and urged him to give 
his reasons for so dangerous a resolve. He at length 
replied, that Mary had given him no occasion ; which 
w y as all that she desired. Whether he remained in 
the realm or not, she, before competent witnesses, 
was acquitted by his own confession. She therefore, 
said, " she was satisfied" The following passages 
are quoted from a letter of the council to the queen- 
mother of France, supposed to be from the pen of 
Maitland, which detail the interview with Darnley : 

" About ten or twelve days ago, the Queen, at our 
request, came to this town of Lisleburg (Edinburgh). 
Her majesty was desirous the King should have come 
with her, but because he liked to remain at Stirling, 
and wait her return thither, she left him there, with 
an intention to go towards him in five or six days; 
meantime, whilst the Queen was absent, the Earl of 
Lennox, his father, came to visit him in Stirling, and 
having remained with him two or three days, he went 
his way to Glasgow, the ordinary place of his abode; 
from Glasgow my Lord of Lennox wrote to the 
Queen, and acquainted her Majesty, that though for- 
merly, both by letters and messages, and now also by 
communication with his son, he endeavored to divert 
him from an enterprise he had in view, he neverthe- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 143 

less had not the interest to alter his mind. This pro- 
ject he tells the Queen, was to retire out of the king- 
dom beyond sea, and for this purpose he had a ship 
lying ready. The Earl of Lennox's letter came to 
the Queen's hands on Michaelmas-day, and her maj- 
esty was pleased to impart the same to the lords of 
her council; and if her majesty was surprised by this 
advertisement, these lords were no less astonished to 
understand that the King, who may justly esteem 
himself happy, upon account of the honor conferred 
upon him, and whose chief aim should be to render 
himself grateful to her country, should entertain any 
thoughts of departing after so strange a manner, out 
of her presence ; nor was it possible for them to form 
a conjecture from whence such an imagination should 
take its rise. Their lordships, therefore, took a resolu- 
tion to talk with the King, that they might learn from 
himself the occasion of this hasty deliberation. The 
same evening the King came to Edinburgh, but 
made some difficulty to enter into the palace, by 
reason that three or four lords * were at that time 
present with the Queen, and peremptorily insisted 
that they might be gone before he would condescend 
to come in; which deportment appeared to be abun- 
dantly unreasonable, since they were three of the 
greatest lords in the kingdom, and that those kings 
who by birth were sovereigns of the realm, have never 
acted in that manner towards the nobility. The 
Queen, however, received this behavior as decently 
as was possible ; and condescended so far as to meet 
the King without the palace, and so conducted him 
into her own apartments ; and there he remained all 
* The Earls Murray, Rothes and Glencairn. 



144 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

night, and then her majesty entered calmly with him 
on the subject of his going abroad, that she might -un- 
derstand from himself the occasion of such a resolu- 
tion ; but he would by no means give or acknowledge 
that he had any occasion offered him of discontent. 
The lords of council being acquainted, early next 
morning, that the King was going to return to Stir- 
ling, they repaired to the Queen's apartment, and 
no other person being present, except Monsieur de 
Croc, whom they prayed to assist with them, as being 
here on the part of her majesty; the occasion of 
their being together here was then, with all humility 
and reverence due to their majesties, proposed: 
namely, to understand from the King, whether, ac- 
cording to advice imparted to the Queen, by the Earl 
of Lennox, he had formed a resolution to depart by 
sea out of the realm, and upon what ground, and for 
what end ? That if his resolution proceeded from 
discontent, they were earnest to know what persons 
had afforded an occasion for the same. That if he 
could complain of any of the subjects of the realm, be 
they of what quality soever, the fault should imme- 
diately be repaired to his satisfaction. And now we 
did remonstrate with him, that his own honor, and the 
Queen's honor, the honor of us all, was concerned ; 
for if without just occasion, he would retire from the 
palace, and abandon the society of her to whom he is 
so far obliged, that in order to advance him, she 
humbled herself, and, from being his sovereign, sur- 
rendered herself to be his wife; if he should act in 
this sort, the whole world would blame him, as in- 
grate and utterly unworthy to possess the place to 
which she had exalted him. On the other hand, if any 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 145 

just occasion had been given him, it behooved to be 
very important, since it inclined him to relinquish so 
beautiful a Queen, and noble realm ; and the same 
must have been afforded either by the Queen herself, 
or us, her ministers. As for us, Ave professed our- 
selves ready to do him all the justice he could demand, 
Then her majesty was pleased to enter into the dis- 
course, and spoke affectionately to him, beseeching 
him that since he would not open his mind to her in 
private, according to her most earnest request, he 
would declare before these lords, where she had of- 
fended him, in anything. She likewise said, that she 
had a clear conscience ; that in all her life she had 
never done anything that could prejudice his or her 
honor ; but, nevertheless, as she might have given him 
offence without design, she was willing to make 
amends as far as he should require ; therefore, prayed 
him not to dissemble. 

" But though the Queen and all others, with Mon- 
sieur de Croc, used all the interest they were able, he 
would not own that he had intended any voyage, and 
declared freely, that the Queen had given him no 
occasion of complaint. Whereupon he took leave of 
her majesty, and went his way, so that we were all of 
opinion this was but a false alarm the Earl of Len- 
nox was willing to give her majesty ; nevertheless, by 
a letter, which the king has since wrote to the Queen 
in a sort of disguised style, it appears that he still has 
it in his head to leave the kingdom ; and there is an 
advertisement otherwise, that he is secretly proposing 
to be gone. 



« > 



Tis true, that in the letter he grounds a com- 
10 



146 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

plaint on two points; one is, that her majesty trusts 
him not with so much authority, nor is at such pains 
to advance him, and make him honored, as she first 
did ; and the other point is, that no hody attends him, 
and that the nobility desert his company. To these 
the Queen has made answer, that if the case be so, he 
ought to blame himself, and not her; for, that in the 
beginning, she had conferred so much honor upon 
him, as came afterwards to render herself uneasy — 
the credit and reputation wherein she had placed 
him, having served as a shadow to those who have 
most heinously offended her reputation. But not- 
withstanding this, she has continued to show him 
such respect, that although they who did perpetrate 
the murder of her faithful servant, had entered her 
chamber with his knowledge, having followed close, 
and had named him the chief of their enterprise ; yet 
would she never accuse, but did always excuse him, 
and w r as willing to appear as though she believed it 
not. And then as to his not being attended, the fault 
thereof must be charged upon himself, since she has 
always made an offer to him of her own servants ; and 
as for the nobility, they come to court and pay defer- 
ence and respect, according as they have any matters 
to do, and as they receive a kindly countenance ; but 
that he is at no pains to gain them, and make himself 
beloved, having gone so far as to prohibit those noble- 
men from entering his room, whom she had first ap- 
pointed to be about his person. If the nobility aban- 
don him, his own deportment towards them is the 
cause thereof ; for if he desires to be followed and at- 
tended, he must, in the first place, gain their love, 
and for this purpose render himself amiable to them, 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 147 

without which, it would be difficult for her majesty 
to regulate this point — especially to make the nobility 
consent, that he shall have the management of affairs 
put into his hands, because she finds them utterly 
averse to any such matter." 

When Darnley rose to leave the council, he said to 
the Queen, " Adieu ! madam. You shall not see my 
face for a long space." Turning to the lords, he 
added, " Gentlemen, adieu ! ,: At that moment the 
distance between him and Mary was wider, and more 
sharply defined, than when he reached Edinburgh. 
He continued preparations for leaving the kingdom, 
but subsequently abandoned them, to his own and the 
Queen's misfortune. 

Instead of opposing any farther the King's deter- 
mination, Mary Stuart, without inviting him to join 
the party, made a tour to the south-eastern frontier, 
to quell the insubordination of the Johnsons, Arm- 
strongs and Elliots, who, like mountain-panthers, 
were fiercely warring with each other. October 6th, 
1566, the Earl of Bothwell, by the Queen's commis- 
sion, as lord lieutenant, had repaired to the scene of 
conflict. Two days after, the Queen reached Jedburg 
to hold her u justice aire," * or assizes, and sustain 
with royal justice and presence the military force. 
On the day of her arrival, Bothwell, in a personal 
combat with John Elliot of Park,f was dangerously 

* " Justice aires were holden annually in the provinces for 
the administration of justice. Many flagrant enormities hav- 
ing been committed in Liddisdale, it was deemed necessary 
that the Queen should assist in person, in the manner of her 
predecessors." 

f This John Elliot, alias John of Park, was a notorious out- 



148 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

wounded, and immediately removed to the Castle of 
Hermitage, not far from the marches, where he en- 
countered the borderers. When Mary heard of the 
Earl's peril, she " was so highly grieved in heart, that 
she took no repose in body until she saw him ! " * 
With the restlessness of impatient love, she remained 
at Jedburg officially until the 15th of October, when 
she took a dashing steed and flew to the Hermitage, 
attended by Murray and other nobles. She found 
the favorite chieftain pale and languishing, and 
feared a fatal issue. Deeply grieving, she yielded to 
the urgency of affairs, and with marvelous fleetness 
returned the same day to Jedburg ; making the whole 
distance traveled on horseback about forty miles. 
But refusing rest, she employed the time after reach- 
ing her apartments, " till the noon of night," writing 
to Bothwell, whom she had so recently left. The fol- 
lowing morning prostrating disease crimsoned her 
cheek, and falling into a swoon, she lay at the gate 
of death for several hours. When this insensibility 
passed, the fair sufferer was in the embrace of a burn- 
ing fever. Reason was dethroned, and it seemed to 
all that life's golden bowl would soon be broken. 
With returning consciousness, Mary thought also that 
her departure was near. Requesting the nobles to 
offer prayer in her behalf, she confided her son to 
Elizabeth, and sent a messenger to apprise Darnley of 
her danger. 

The tidings of Mary's illness, spread over the 
plains and highlands of Scotland. Prominent mem- 
law. The cause of the quarrel between the two men is not 
known. 

* Crawford. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 149 

bers of the nobility hastened to Jedburg. Meanwhile, 
Bothwell, convalescent, with knightly ardor sought 
her presence. He was member of the privy council, 
and would have doubtless been there, if for no other 
reason. But the entire affair, from the combat with 
the freebooter, had worn the romance of concealed 
passion. 

Darnley arrived the. 28th of October, and finding 
Mary already favorably past the crisis of her malady, 
he tarried only a night, and repaired again to Glas- 
gow. A visit to a wife and Queen on the couch of 
pain, so brief and coldly formal, deepened the bitter- 
ness of her enmity, and stimulated her devotion to 
the courtly earl. The recovery to comparative health 
was slow. ^November 8th, she journeyed with care- 
ful conveyance and frequent rest, to Kelso, and 
along the coast to Craigmillar Castle, where she took 
apartments on the 20th ; a distance of three miles 
from Edinburgh. Melancholy and spectral from sor- 
rows and disease, she appeared yet on the confines of 
eternity. De Croc wrote to the Archbishop of Glas- 
gow : " The Queen is not well. I do believe the prin- 
cipal part of her disease to consist of a deep grief and 
sorrow. Nor does it seem possible to make her for- 
get the same. Still she repeats the words, ' I could 
wish to be dead.' " Said the observing Lethington : 
" It is an heart-break for her to think that he should 
be her husband, and how to be free of him she sees no 
outlet." This dismal complaining awakened in the 
minds of those around her, various plans for the re- 
lief of the Queen. Morton, Ruthven and Lindsay, 
who were connected with her counselors, by ties of re- 
lationship or friendship, having shed the blood of 



150 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

Rizzio, were ready for further dark conspiracies. 
Lethington arranged a plan with shrewd calculation, 
and daring disregard of tragical results. He pro- 
posed the return of the exiled murderers, on condi- 
tions of a divorce from Darnley, and if necessary, his 
assassination. Bothwell seized the suggestion enthu- 
siastically, and Argyle and Huntley assented. Mur- 
ray was anxious to have his sister secure a divorce, as 
the onlv deliverance from greater evils. When the 
scheme was broached to Mary Stuart, she answered, 
" That on two conditions she might agree to the pro- 
posal : The first, that the divorce should be made law- 
fully, and that it should not prejudice her son; other- 
wise, she would rather endure all torments, and abide 
the perils that might ensue." 

The Earl of Bothwell answered, " The divorce 
might be made without prejudice to the prince, since 
he himself had succeeded to his father's title and 
estate ; although he had been divorced from his 
mother." 

It was also suggested that after the divorce, the 
King should remain in one part of the country, the 
Queen in another, or that he should withdraw to a 
foreign land. 

The Queen here said, " That perhaps he would 
change his opinion, and that it was better that she 
herself for a time passed into France." 

Then Lethington rejoined, " Think ye not that we, 
who are of the chief of your nobility and council, 
shall find means that you be quit of him without 
prejudice to your son ? and although my Lord of Mur- 
ray be no less scrupulous for a Protestant than your 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 151 

grace for a Papist, I am sure lie will look through his 
fingers thereto, and will behold our doings." 

The Queen here answered decidedly, " I will that 
ye do nothing to spot my honor or conscience; and 
therefore I pray you let the matter rest, till God of 
his goodness find the remed}'." * 

Lethington closes the conference by remarking, 
" Madam, let us guide the business among us, and 
your grace shall see nothing but good, and approved 
by Parliament." This interview was immediately 
followed by an act which was the shadow of fearful 
events. The lords entered into a bond and solemn 
oath, " to cut off the King as a young fool and tyrant, 
who was an enemy to the nobility, and had conducted 
himself in an intolerable manner to the Queen." 
Pledging to each other fidelity unto death, in this de- 
fence of the state, the covenant was signed by Sir 
James Balfour, the writer, and a partizan of Both- 
well, Huntley, Lethington and Argyle, and committed 
to the care of Bothwell. A few weeks later, the royal 
christening occurred at Stirling Castle. Mary was 
educated amid pomp, of which she was fond, and 
preparations for the festival had been made on a 
magnificent scale. 

The Pope's nuncio was invited to attend, but upon 
more prudent advice, Mary prevented his appearance 
on dangerous ground. Elizabeth appointed the Coun- 
tess of Argyle to represent her as godmother, and 
dispatched Bedford with a font of gold, valued at five 
thousand dollars, to be used at the ceremony. Darn- 
ley was not present, though in the Castle. In the 

* Extracted from the declaration of the Earls Huntley and 
Argyle. See Appendix to Keith ; Anderson's Collection!. 

■< 



152 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

consciousness of his degradation, and in anger, he 
shut himself in his room till the imposing service was 
concluded. Bothwell was master of ceremonies, 
though a Protestant ; and but two of the nobles had 
been adherents of Rome. Mary shone in jewels, il- 
lustrating what is oftener true than known, that be- 
neath a golden vestment and robe may beat an anx- 
ious heart, and under a crown, throb a troubled brain. 
Such is God's eternal law of correspondence between 
a man's real condition and his character. The French 
ambassador, De Croc, wrote a letter descriptive of 
the baptismal scene, and the incidents which oc- 
curred : 

" December 23d. 
" The christening of the prince was solemnized on 
Tuesday last, when he received the name of Charles 
James ; it was the Queen's pleasure that he should 
bear the name of James, together with Charles, after 
the King of France, because, said she, all the good 
Kings of Scotland, his predecessors, who have been 
most devoted to the crown of France, were called by 
the name of James. Everything was performed ac- 
cording to the holy Catholic church. The King, 
Lord Darnlev, had still given out that he should de- 
part two days before the christening: but when the 
time approached, he gave no sign of removal ; only, 
he still kept close within his own apartment. The 
very day of the ceremony, he sent three times, desir- 
ing me either to come and see him, or to appoint the 
hour when he might come to my lodgings; so that I 
found myself obliged to signify to him, that since he 
was on no good terms with the Queen, I had been 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 153 

charged by the most Christian king, to have no com- 
munication with him. And I caused him also to be 
told, that as it would not be proper for him to come 
to my lodgings, where there was a crowd of company ; 
as he might understand that there were two passages 
in it, and that if he entered by one door, I should be 
constrained to go out by the other ; nor can any good 
be expected from him. I cannot pretend to foretell 
how all may terminate, but this I will say, that mat- 
ters cannot long remain as they are, without produc- 
ing bad consequences." 

Mary, upon the renewed entreaty of Lethington 
and Bothwell, restored Morton, Ruthven, Lindsay, 
and seventy-six more of the refugees. Elizabeth, in 
private correspondence, had advised the Queen to do 
so, and also to treat Darnley with kindness. But the 
King, alarmed at the return of his own instruments 
of vengeance, hastily abandoned the court, and took 
up his residence in Glasgow, at his father's house. 
The small pox was prevailing, and he became its vic- 
tim. 

Notwithstanding, the plot against his life went 
steadily forward. Bothwell, who was the soul of the 
conspiracy, continued to gain confederates. Morton 
returned to Scotland the fore part of January, 1567. 
The earl made an unwearied effort to enlist his power- 
ful co-operation, but he refused, though assured that 
the Queen approved the measure, unless he could see 
her signature of sanction. This he attempted to ob- 
tain, and failed. Whether Mary had withheld all 
connivance from her admirer, or was governed by 
prudence only, cannot be certainly known. It was 
rumored at this time, that the King had determined 



154 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

to seize the person of his son James, have him 
crowned, and hold in the name of the prince the 
sceptre of the realm. Mary was sufficiently disturbed 
to remove James to Edinburgh, that no surprise 
might give reality to her fears. Darnley was recover- 
ing from sickness, but powerless as infancy. 

The Queen accused him of the absurd design, and 
expressed her feelings in a communication to the 
Archbishop of Glasgow : 

" For the King, our husband, God knows always 
our 'part towards Mm, and his behavior and thankful- 
ness to us in semblament well known to God and the 
world — especially our own subjects see it — and in 
their hearts, we doubt not, condemn the same, — al- 
ways we perceive him occupied, busily enough, to 
have inquisition of our doings, which, God willing, 
shall always be such as none shall have occasion to 
be offended with, or to report of us any ways but hon- 
orably. Howsoever he, his father, and their follow- 
ers speak, who we know want no good will to make 
us ado, if their power were equivalent to their mind ; 
but God moderates their forces well enough, and takes 
means of the execution of their pretences from them, 
for as we believe they shall find none or very few ap- 
provers of their councils and devices, imagined to our 
displeasure or disliking ; and thus commit you to the 
protection of God. 

" Your right good mistress, 

" Maey. 

" At Edinburgh, the 20th Jan. 1560." 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 155 

Soon after this letter was written, Mary left the 
capital for Glasgow. She found Darnley still an in- 
valid, and greatly amazed at her visit, because he 
had heard of her suspicions, and caught faint tokens 
of an impending bolt. He told her all, expressing 
his sad apprehensions, although he knew she had re- 
fused to sign a paper authorizing his seizure, and if 
he resisted, his murder. 

" He added that he would never think that she, 
who was his own proper flesh, would do him any 
hurt : and then, with more vanity than confidence, 
he declared that if any others should intend to injure 

him, he would sell his life dear, unless thev took him 

1 7 j 

sleeping. Mary in her turn reminded him of his in- 
tention to retire to the Continent, and of the project 
attributed to him by Hiegate and Walcar.** He af- 
firmed that he had never been serious in his threats 
of departure, and denied the second charge with ve- 
hemence." Mary, at length, with her gentle persua- 
sion, tearful and lustrous blue eyes, subduing re- 
proaches, and expressions of affection, won the confi- 
dence of the vacillating, miserable phantom of roy- 
alty. He had always loved her, and his alienation 
was that of wounded pride, and undisguised contempt 
from the object of love and ambition. His confes- 
sions were full, and promises for the future satisfac- 
tory. 

He begged her to leave him no more. Mary then 
wished him to go to Craigmillar soon as able to travel 
on a litter ; he consented, if she would receive him 
cordially to her heart, as her true husband. To this 

* The reported plan of securing the cornation of the prince, 
and acting as regent. 



156 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

she assented, and gave him her hand, suggesting a 
delay till cured of his sickness, and desired him to 
keep the reconciliation a secret, to avoid giving of- 
fence to the nobles. The mind pauses over this scene, 
bewildered and sad. To believe Mary entirely sin- 
cere in so great and sudden a transition of manner, is 
an amplitude of charitable credulity it would be 
pleasant to award. To doubt her truthfulness, is to 
people the obscurity of a woman's heart with more 
demoniac inmates, than the deepest depravity in time 
would seem to warrant. By whatever reasons, en- 
forced by a false training, she hushed the upbraidings 
of conscience, the conclusion of perfidy is inevitable. 
She was impetuous in feeling, and gave herself to a 
favorite object with almost insane ardor. Both well 
manifestly ruled the Queen, and she stooped to his 
lawless designs. He had transferred Nicholas Hu- 
bert, his servant, more familiarly called Paris, from 
the city of his nativity, to her service. He was in 
the conspiracy of his former master, and w T as with the 
Queen during her visit to Glasgow. Paris, only two 
days after Mary's arrival, was the bearer of a letter 
to Bothwell, containing evidences of attachment to 
the earl, and comments on the interview with Darn- 
ley, in these remarkable words : 

" I have never seen him better, or speak so humbly, 
and if I had not known from experience that his 
heart is as soft as w 7 ax, and mine as hard as diamond, 
I should almost have taken pity on him. However, 
fear nothing. You constrain me so to dissimulate, 
that I am horrified, seeing that you do not merely 
force me to play the part of a traitress ; I pray you 
remember that, if desire to please you did not force 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 157 

me, I would rather die than commit these things ; for 
my heart bleeds to do them. In brief, he will not 
come with me, unless upon this condition, that I shall 
promise to use in common with him a single table, 
and the same bed as before, and that I shall not leave 
him so often, and that if I will do this, he will do all 
I wish, and will follow me." Carried away by the 
violence of her love, she told Bothwell that she would 
obey him in all things ; and begged him not to con- 
ceive a bad opinion of her ; " because," she continued, 
" you yourself are the occasion of it ; I would never 
act against him, to gratify my own private revenge." 

In her wild impulses, she laid on the altar of sacri- 
fice to Bothwell's ambition, her honor, principle, and 
conscience — a mournful example of frailty and guilt, 
upon the summit of human greatness. Paris con- 
veyed the message, with a purse of gold, and bracelets 
which Mary had made for Bothwell. The faithful 
servant was directed to inquire where Darnley should 
be lodged, in the Kirk of Field or at Craigmillar. 
It was deemed improper to take the King to the pal- 
ace, on account of his malady. It was decided by 
Bothwell and Lethington to give the invalid apart- 
ments in the Kirk of Field, which was " a large, open 
space near an old Dominican convent of Blackfriars." 

In the pleasant area were gardens and houses, the 
residences of the Duke of Chatellerault, Robert Bal- 
four, a relative of Sir James, who drew the murder- 
ous bond, and others. The house of Balfour was se- 
lected, because, though less spacious, it was more se- 
cluded than any other dwelling. Paris saw Bothwell 
and James Balfour in consultation, who gave to the 
servant this brief and significant direction: u Re- 



158 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

turn to the Queen, and recommend me very humbly 
to her grace, and tell her all will go well, for Mr. 
James Balfour and I have not slept the whole night, 
so we have set all things in order, and have got ready 
the house. And tell the Queen that I send to her this 
diamond by your hands, and that if I had my heart, 
I would send it to her very willingly." It was not 
long before poor Darnley was moving slowly towards 
the place of doom, and lavishing caresses on the 
Queen, who wrote to Bothwell, " according to the 
commission which I have received, I shall bring the 
man with me Monday." 

Darnley consented to the arrangement for the Kirk 
of Field. But his mind was distressed with the ap- 
prehension of treachery. He said to Crawford, " I 
have fears enough, but may God judge between us. 
I have her promise only to trust to, but I have put 
myself in her hands, and shall go with her, though 
she should murder me." Bothwell met Mary and the 
King just before they reached Edinburgh ; and on the 
31st of January, the invalid, trembling with dread 
presentiments, entered the apartment from which 
he would not depart alive. The house was small and 
poorly furnished. It was of two stories, the lower 
containing a cellar, and a single room besides; the 
upper story was divided into a gallery over the cellar, 
and a bed-chamber corresponding to the room beneath. 
" ISTelson, Darnley's servant, when he arrived at Kirk 
of Field, was about to prepare the Duke of Chatel- 
lerault's house for the reception of his master. But 
the Queen prevented him, and directed him to Bal- 
four's house, whither the necessary furniture was 
conveyed, and which Bothwell had evidently chosen, 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 159 

that he might carrv out his murderous intentions with 
greater facility. Darnley was established on the first 
floor, where his three servants, Taylor, kelson, and 
Edward Simons, occupied the gallery, which served 
at once as a wardrobe and cabinet. The cellar on the 
ground floor was transformed into a kitchen, and the 
Queen had a bed prepared for herself in the room 
immediately below that in which the King slept. She 
also directed that the door at the foot of the staircase, 
which communicated between the ground-floor and 
the upper rooms, should be removed. Thus installed, 
though very uncomfortably, by Darnley's side, she 
passed several nights under the same roof with him. 
Her assiduity, her attention, and the manifold proofs 
which she gave him of her affection, were all well cal- 
culated to dispel his fears." 

Meanwhile, the Earl of Bothwell was busy with 
his remorseless imaginings, whose unfinished plan 
was the murder of the object between him and a 
throne. He had enlisted, to act subordinate parts, his 
chamberlain, tailor, porter, and others, whose metal 
he had tested in frontier conflicts. False keys were 
prepared, and a barrel of gunpowder procured by 
Bothwell. Paris tried the keys, to be sure of their 
similarity, but when his old master unfolded the 
whole plan of assassination, he hesitated, fearing his 
own destruction might be the result. And according 
to subsequent confession of the Frenchman, the fol- 
lowing conversation occurred : 

" On hearing him my heart grew faint ; I did not 
say a word, but cast down my eyes." Bothwell, who 
was not pleased at his silence and consternation, 
looked at him with impatience, and asked him what 



160 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

lie thought of the plan. " Sir, I think that what you 
tell me is a great thing.'' " What is your opinion of 
it ? " reiterated Both well. " Pardon me, sir, if I tell 
you my opinion according to my poor mind." 
" What ! are you going to preach to me ? " " No, sir, 
you shall hear presently." " Well ! say on." Paris 
then reminded him of the trouble and misfortunes of 
his past life, and sought to dissuade him from this 
murder, which would destroy his present tranquillity, 
and endanger the extraordinary favor which he had 
attained. He concluded by telling him : " Now, sir, 
if you undertake this thing, it will be the greatest 
trouble you ever had, above all others you have en- 
dured, for every one will cry out upon you, and you 
will be destroyed." " Well," said Bothwell, " have 
you done ? " " You will pardon me, sir, if you 
please, if I have spoken to you according to my poor 
mind." " Fool that you are ! " said Bothwell, " do 
you think that I am doing this all alone by myself ? " 
rt Sir, I do not know how you are going to do it, but 
I know well that it will be the greatest trouble you 
ever had." " And how so ? " said Bothwell ; " I have 
already with me Lethington, who is esteemed one of 
the most prudent men in this country, and who is the 
undertaker of all this; and I have also the Earl of 
Argyle, my brother Huntley, Morton, Ruthven, and 
Lindsay. These three last will never fail me, for I 
have begged for their pardon, and I have the signa- 
tures of all those I have mentioned to you. We were 
desirous to do it the last time we were at Craigmillar ; 
but you are a fool and poor of mind, unworthy to 
hear anything of consequence." 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 161 

Paris finally consented to Bothwell's satanic propo- 
sals, it may be with less pause than he affirms. He 
promised to introduce Hay of Tallo, Hepburn, and 
Ormiston, into Mary's chamber, on the evening ap- 
pointed for the deed, while she was with Darnley, 
that they might deposit the powder there. Paris was 
ordered not to place the Queen's bed under the King, 
because the explosion must be where it stood. This 
was neglected, and he affirms that Mary, coming in, 
directed the change to be made. The night of Sun- 
day, February 9th, was the time designated for the 
terrible experiment. Paris says, the Queen then sub- 
stituted worn drapery for the new velvet in Darnley's 
chamber ; and Nelson, Bothwell's servant, testified, 
that she removed a rich coverlet of fur from her own 
apartment. 

Sabbath evening she was with Darnley, conversing 
familiarly, while the enginery of death was in prep- 
aration below. Toward sunset of the holy day, Both- 
well had assembled his accomplices, and assigned to 
each his part in the midnight close of a slow and 
cruel conspiracy. At ten o'clock the sacks of powder 
were carried from a secluded hall, in Holyroocl Ab- 
bey, near Bothwell's lodgings, across the gardens by 
Wilson, Powrie, and Dalgleish, to Blackf riars Wynd ; 
when Hay of Tallo, Hepburn, and Ormiston, re- 
ceiving them, deposited the treasure of ruin, with the 
aid of Paris, in the Queen's chamber. When all was 
ready for the match, Paris went to the King's room, 
and the Queen, recollecting her promise to be present 
that night at a masquerade in the palace, in honor of 
the marriage of her servant Bastian, kissed the fever- 
ish lips of Darnley, and taking a tender adieu, has- 
II 



162 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

tened with her suite, including Bothwell, by the light 
of torches, to the festival. The King watched her 
receding form with melancholy sighs ; and as silence 
settled ominously around him, Nelson, standing in 
the deserted hall, heard him repeat the 55th Psalm. 
By a singular coincidence, it was in the English even- 
ing service of that day. There was something start- 
ling and prophetic in these verses, which fell tremu- 
lously on the " electric air : " 

" My heart is disquieted within me, and the fear of death 
is fallen upon me. 

" Fearful ness and trembling are come upon me, and an 
horrible dread hath overwhelmed me. 

" And I said, O that I had wings like a dove, for then would 
1 flee away, and be at rest. 

" It is not an open enemy that hath done me this dishonor, 
for then I could have borne it. 

" Neither was it mine adversary that did magnify himself 
against me, for then peradventure I would have hid myself 
from him. 

" But it was even thou, my companion, my guide, and my 
own familiar friend." 

After the excitement of awakened fear had sub- 
sided, the desolate invalid fell asleep, with Taylor, 
his young page, lying near him. Bothwell about mid- 
night left the dance, and rejoined his associates. 
Doffing his elegant costume of black velvet and satin, 
for common apparel, he took Dalgleish, Paris, Wilson 
and Powrie, and descended cautiously into the 
Queen's garden, directing his steps toward the south- 
ern gate. The appearance of men along that unfre- 
quented path, in the darkness of night, surprised the 
sentinels on guard, and the quick challenge was 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 163 

given : " Who goes there ? " u Friends ! " answered 
Powrie. " Whose friends ? " demanded the guards : 
" Friends of Lord Both well ! " was the reply. Pass- 
ing on, the conspirators found the Nether-bon gate, 
by which they intended to leave the city, shut. Wil- 
son calling to Galloway, the gate-keeper, awoke him, 
and desired him to " open the port to friends of Lord 
Bothwell ! " Galloway inquired what they were doing 
out of their beds at that hour of night. Without an- 
swering, they went on, and called for Ormiston, who 
had assisted in getting the powder. But upon re- 
flection, apprehending personal danger, he had re- 
tired to bed, and refused to regard the summons of 
Bothwell. At Blackfriars Wynd, the earl, leaving 
his comrades, proceeded alone to Kirk of Field, to 
meet Hepburn, and Hay of Tallo, in Balfour's gar- 
den. These two faithful instruments of Bothwell just 
then entered, by the false keys, into Darnley's apart- 
ment. The noise startled the unquiet sleeper, and he 
sprang from his bed to escape. The messengers of 
death seized him, and in a moment he was gasping 
for life in their grasp. Having strangled the page in 
the same manner, the bodies were removed to an or- 
chard not far distant. Hepburn then lighted the 
match, which ran to the gunpowder below, and with 
Bothwell, and Hay of Tallo, retired to see the explo- 
sion. 

There those daring conspirators stood in the still- 
ness of deepest night, the King's dying cries yet in 
their ears, for a quarter of an hour, when, with a ter- 
rific shock and noise, the house flew in fragments, 
leaving the body of Darnley unscathed and unbruised 
by the scattered wreck. 



164 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

The bandits then went with speed to Edinburgh, 
Bothwell, failing on account of the arm maimed in 
light, to climb as he expected over a broken rampart, 
was obliged again to awaken Galloway, and enter by 
]STether-bon gate. Upon approaching the palace, the 
sentinels challenged the murderers, but permitted 
them to pass. Bothwell went hurriedly to his cham- 
ber, drank wine to calm his agitation, and sought re- 
pose. His heart was still beating tumultuously, when 
Hacket, a servant, knocked abruptly at the door. It 
was opened, and he entered, the very ghost of terror. 
Bothwell, with great self-command, inquired what 
was the matter. Hacket answered : " The King's 
house is blown up, and I trow the King is slain." 
Bothwell started with apparent amazement, and 
shouted, '"'Treason ! " Dressing himself, he was joined 
by Huntley, and they went to inform the Queen. The 
bold assassin then repaired with a band of soldiers to 
the place of his successful villainy. At daybreak, 
multitudes, called together by the explosion, and the 
tidings which followed swiftly, gathered around the 
demolished dwelling, and the ghastly forms of the 
King and his unoffending servant. Bothwell dis- 
persed the wondering and indignant throng, and for- 
bidding any examination of the bodies, ordered them 
taken to an adjacent house. The quick eye of the 
many observers, however, had noticed the absence of 
mutilation, and that not so much " as the smell of fire 
was on the garments " of the dead. Darnley was 
buried privately in the chapel of Holyrood. And 
now followed the fierce commotion in the world of 
thought. The moral atmosphere was surcharged with 
the elements of retribution, to fall erelong some- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 105 

where; and millions of minds at home and abroad 
were feeling for the fearful secret of guilt. It is 
impossible to escape the conviction that Mary was the 
responsible motive of BothwelPs ambition, as Darn- 
ley was the helpless sacrifice. She transmitted with- 
out delay a communication to the Archbishop of 
Glasgow, which certainly is marked with extraordi- 
nary coolness of narration: 

"Edinburgh, Feb. 10, 1567. 

" Most Reverend Father in God, and trusted Coun- 
sellor, we greet you well : 

" We have received this morning your letters of 
27th January, by your servant, Robert Drury, con- 
taining in one part sic advertisement as we find by 
effect over true, albeit the success has not altogether 
been sic as the authors of that mischievous fact had 
preconceived and put it in execution ; and if God in 
his mercy had not preserved us, as we trust, to the 
end that we may take a rigorous vengeance of that 
mischievous deed, which, ere it shall remain unpun- 
ished, we had rather lose life and all. The matter is 
so horrible and strange, as we believe the like was 
never heard of in any country. 

" This night past, being the 9th of February, a lit- 
tle after two hours after midnight, the house wherein 
the King was lodged was, in one instant, blown into 
the air, he lying asleep in his bed, with sic a vehe- 
mency that of the whole lodging, walls and other, 
there is nothing remaining; na, not a stone above an- 
other, but all either carried far away, or dang in dross 
to the very ground stone. It must be done by the 
force of gunpowder, and appears to have been a mine. 



166 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

By whom it has been done, or in what manner, ap- 
pears not yet. 

" We doubt not, but according to the diligence our 
council has begun already to use, the certainty of all 
shall be usit shortly, and the same being discovered, 
which w r e wot God will not suffer to lie hid, we hope 
to punish the same with sic rigor as shall serve for 
example of this cruelty to all ages to come. Always 
whoever has taken this wicked enterprise in hand, we 
assure ourselves it was dressit as well for ourself as 
for the King, (for we lay for the most part of all last 
week in that same lodging, and was there accom- 
panied with the most part of the lords that were in 
this town,) and that same night at midnight, and of 
very chance tarried not all night there by reason of 
some masks at the abbey (Holy rood) : But we believe 
it was not chance but God, that put in our head. 

" We dispatched this bearer upon the sudden ; 
therefore write to you the more shortly. The rest of 
the letter we shall answer at more leisure, within four 
or five days, by your own servant. And so for the 
present we commit you to Almighty God." 

Mary appeared crushed with sorrow, but it took the 
form of silent dejection. She displayed none of the 
laudable energy with which she hunted out the slay- 
ers of Rizzio. Returning to her chamber, she would 
see none but Bothwell. There is also the testimony 
recorded by Laing, given in subsequent trials before 
the judges, and upon the scaffold, by the menials in 
this murderous work. From the reconciliation with 
Darnley at Glasgow, there is a train of circumstantial 
evidence of Mary's complicity, more conclusive than 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 167 

that which has consigned many a criminal to the ex- 
ecutioner's axe. This conviction of her guilt at the 
tribunal of unbiased judgment, however reluctantly 
allowed, is only a single item of proof, darkening the 
historic annals of a fallen race, that intellect, beauty, 
and pride of place are no security against the insid- 
ious and destructive power of unsubdued selfishness, 
taking the descending channel of wild and stormy 
passion. ^Nothing but Christian humility and trust 
in an infinite Guide, can save, amid strong tempta- 
tions, immortality in a hovel or on a throne, from 
the strand of moral ruin. 



CHAPTER V. 

Mary, immediately after the horrors of the King's 
assassination, wrote the letter above quoted to Arch- 
bishop of Glasgow. It was left to her privy council, 
most of whom were actors in the regicide, and whose 
guiding genius was the remorseless Lethington, to in- 
form the French court of what had occurred. After 
making a favorable impression on Catherine De Med- 
ici and her nobility, February 12th, she issued a proc- 
lamation, offering a reward of two thousand pounds to 
any one who would disclose the murderers of her hus- 
band, or give information which would lead to their 
detection. This was the signal for a public expres- 
sion of popular feeling. 

The convictions of hitherto silent observers of pass- 
ing events, came to the surface with fearful distinct- 
ness and rapidity, as if past atonement were made for 
the painful and brief delay. The night after the 
royal proclamation, a paper was fastened on the door 
of Tolbooth, the common prison, branding Bothwell, 
James Balfour, and David Chambers, (a friend of 
the earl) as the guilty men. At dead of night, strange 
voices echoed the same charge on the quiet air along 
the streets of the capital. Placards added the names 
of the Queen's servants, Bastian, Rizzio's brother, 
and others, to the instruments of crime. Meanwhile, 
Mary not only neglected to arrest the less prominent 
conspirators, but, notwithstanding the ominous mur- 

168 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 169 

mnrs and printed tokens of indignant opinion around 
her palace, she was on terms of familiarity with Both- 
well, the most suspicious and lawless noble in her 
realm. He followed her to the mansion of Lord Se- 
ton, where she went while the excitement of the 
masses was increasing every hour. But the Queen 
was not a monument of grief, nor active in the work 
of securing the criminals. Writes Tytler, who is an 
apologist for Mary : " It did not escape attention, 
that scarce two weeks after her husband's death, while 
in the country and in the city all were shocked at the 
late occurrences, and felt them as a stain on their na- 
tional character, the court at Seton was occupied in 
gay amusements. Mary and Bothwell would shoot 
at the butts against Huntley and Seton ; and on one 
occasion, after winning the match, they forced those 
lords to pay the forfeit in the shape of a dinner at 
Tranent." 

Says Mignet : " While engaged in these recreations, 
Mary Stuart was besieged by the accusing distrust of 
her people, and the bitter complaints of the Earl of 
Lennox. At Edinburgh, which had been disturbed, 
on the fatal night of the 9th of February, by the 
band which had left Holyrood palace, reports were 
current which denounced by name the deviser of the 
assassination, and vaguely indicated his accomplices. 
A bill fastened on the Tron in the market-place, de- 
clared that the smith who had furnished the false 
keys to the King's apartment would, on due security, 
come forward and point out his employers. Two new 
placards were also hung up, on one of which were 
written the Queen's initials, M. R., with a hand hold- 
ing a sword ; and on the other Bothwell, with a mallet 



IfO MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

painted above, as having been an instrument with 
which the murder was committed. The whole city 
was in a state of extreme agitation. The Presby- 
terian ministers preached with sombre vehemence, 
calling on God i to reveal and revenge.' 

" The Queen was included in the suspicions of the 
populace, and the idea of her complicity daily gained 
ground. Bothwell became furious, and attempted to 
intimidate public opinion. Accompanied by fifty 
armed men, he rode into Edinburgh and publicly de- 
clared that if he knew who were the authors of the 
placard, he would * wash his hands in their blood.' 
But, animated by suspicion as much as by anger, 
whenever he spoke to any one, of whose friendship 
he was not assured, he watched his movements with 
a jealous eye, and always kept his hand on the hilt 
of his dagger." 

On the 20th of February, the Earl of Lennox, 
Darnley's father, who had waited vainly for decisive 
measures for the arrest and punishment of the con- 
spirators, wrote Mary most earnestly, to delay no 
longer. He adds : 

" I am forced by nature and duty to beseech your 
majesty most humbly, for God's cause, and the honor 
of your majesty, and this your realm, that your high- 
ness would, with convenient diligence, assemble the 
whole nobility and estates of your majesty's realm, 
and they, by your advice, to take such good order for 
the perfect trial of the matter, as I doubt not but, 
with the grace of Almighty God, his Holy Spirit shall 
so work upon the hearts of your majesty and all your 
faithful subjects, as the bloody and cruel actors of 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 171 

this deed shall be manifestly known. And although 
I know I need not put your majesty in remembrance 
thereof, the matter touching your majesty so near as 
it does, yet I shall humbly desire your majesty to 
bear with me, in troubling your highness therein, be- 
ing the father of him that is gone." 

The Queen kindly responded, but adroitly passing 
by the main point, told him that the first business 
before her Parliament, already summoned, would be 
to press rigorously the investigation of " the King, 
her husband's cruel slaughter." 

Meanwhile, her servants, who had been denounced, 
fled from the kingdom ; Powrie and Wilson, at Both- 
welPs order, went to the Castle of Hermitage, on the 
English frontier ; while the Earl of Lennox renewed 
his entreaties, urging that the deed of darkness was 
above the usual course of Parliamentary debate ; " of 
such weight and importance, which ought rather to 
be with all expedition sought out and punished to the 
example of the whole world." 

In regard to the placards to which Lennox alluded 
in his appeal, Mary said in reply, that while they 
were contradictory, " if there be any names men- 
tioned in them that you think worthy to suffer a trial, 
upon your advertisement, we shall so proceed to the 
cognition taking as may stand with the laws of the 
realm ; and being found culpable, shall see the punish- 
ment as vigorously executed, as the weight of the 
crime deserves." 

Elizabeth was not an indifferent spectator of recent 
events. She sent a message by Sir Henry Killigrew, 



172 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

which disclosed her suspicions and ripening dislike 
of Mary Stuart : 

" Madam, my ears have been so astonished, and 
my mind so grieved, and my heart so terrified, at 
hearing the horrible sound of the abominable murder 
of your late husband and my deceased cousin, that I 
have even now no spirit to write about it ; and al- 
though my natural feelings constrain me greatly to 
deplore his death, as he was so near a relation to me, 
nevertheless, boldly to tell you what I think, I can- 
not conceal from myself that I am more full of grief 
on your account than on his. O madam ! I should 
not perform the part of a faithful cousin or an affec- 
tionate friend, if I studied rather to please your ears 
than to endeavor to preserve your honor ; therefore I 
will not conceal from you what most persons say 
about the matter, namely, that you will look through 
your fingers at taking vengeance for this deed, and 
have no intention to touch those who have done you 
this kindness, as if the act would not have been per- 
petrated unless the murderers had received assurance 
of their impunity. Think of me, I beg you, who 
would not entertain such a thought in my heart for all 
the gold in the world. I exhort you, I advise and be- 
seech you to take this thing so much to heart, as not to 
fear to bring to judgment the nearest relation you 
have, and to let no persuasion hinder you from mani- 
festing to the world that you are a noble princess, and 
also a loyal wife." 

In France the impression was spreading that Mary 
was guilty, and her reverend friend, the Archbishop 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 1?3 

of Glasgow, implored her for her own sake, to visit 
the merited vengeance upon the heads of the regicides. 
But the weeks departed, and nothing was done by the 
Queen to vindicate her sullied honor. 

She continued, without interruption, her intimacy 
with Both well, and lavished upon him royal favors. 
She gave him the command of the Castle of Edin- 
burgh, and added other desirable seats to his posses- 
sions. Compelled at length, by the pressure of re- 
monstrances and popular feeling, to abandon the 
posture of indifference, Mary called a council, of 
which Bothwell was a member, and with the consent 
of the nobles, decided to bring the earl to trial. With 
singular haste, she ordered Lennox to appear on the 
12th of April, two weeks after the meeting of council, 
and sustain his accusations against Bothwell. Public 
rumor had singled out this daring favorite of Mary. 
^NTo man was bold enough to testify in court to his 
criminality; he was no common adversary, and fear 
guarded his person, while scorn grew intense from the 
dread of his wrath. 

The artizan who wrought the false keys to Darn- 
ley's chamber refused to reveral his knowledge of the 
conspiracy, because the security demanded was not 
furnished. Lennox urged that " the suspected per- 
sons continuing still at liberty, being great at court, 
and about your majesty's person, comforts and en- 
courages them and theirs, and discourages all others 
that would give an evidence against them." 

Elizabeth joined with the bereaved father, in ad- 
vising the same measures, and sufficient time to pro- 
cure evidence which would convict the guilty. Warn- 
ing Mary of the universal abhorrence the unanswered 



174 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

charge of so base a crime would kindle, she concludes, 
" And rather than this should happen to you, I would 
wish you an honorable burial more than a sullied life. 
I pray the Lord to inspire you to do what may most 
conduce to your honor and the consolation of your 
friends." There is, in this wise counsel, a dignified 
sense of queenly honor, and a real kindness, which 
soften the imperious nature of the masculine Eliza- 
beth. 

The infatuated Queen remained unmoved in her 
fidelity to the aspiring Bothwell, who was allowed to 
arrange the preliminaries of a mock trial. On April 
12th, the day appointed, the assize opened at the 
Tolbooth, before a jury of noblemen, Bothwell's peers 
and partizans. The tribunal was presided over by 
one of the fautors of the murder, the Earl of Argyle, 
then hereditary lord high justice, and guarded by two 
hundred hackbutters ; * while four thousand of Both- 
well's armed adherents mustered in the streets and 
squares of Edinburgh. The law officers of the crown 
were either bribed or intimidated into silence; no 
witnesses were summoned. The accuser, the Earl of 
Lennox, who was on his road to the citv, surrounded 
by a large force of his friends, received orders not to 
enter Edinburgh with more than six in his company, 
and he, therefore, declined to come forward in person. 
The accused, the Earl of Bothwell, presented himself 
before the court of justice with a confident and care- 
less air. Mounted on the late King's favorite horse, 
and surrounded by guards, he was escorted to the 

* The hackbut, or hagbut, was the primitive musket or 
arquebus. A hackbutter was a soldier armed with that 
weapon. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 175 

Tolbooth, with base obsequiousness, by a large num- 
ber of gentlemen. As he passed before the Queen, 
who was standing with Lady Lethington, at one of the 
windows of Holyrood Palace, he turned towards her, 
and she gave him a friendly greeting for a farewell. 
She expressed her sympathy with his position even 
more publicly, by sending him, rather from impa- 
tience than anxiety, a token and message whilst he 
was before his judges." 

The indefinite indictment, implicating Bothwell, 
was read in court ; Lennox appeared by proxy, re- 
questing farther delay ; the crown lawyers were mute ; 
the earl pleaded not guilty, and in the absence of all 
testimony, he was unanimously acquitted. Em- 
boldened by the victory, he published a haughty chal- 
lenge to any gentleman, who dared to whisper against 
him the accusation of murder, to meet him in private 
combat, and test with a duel their cause. The arro- 
gant earl now swept opposition and rivalry from his 
path of bloody renown, as a hunted lion, whose pur- 
suers are at bay, treads proudly on the crushed foli- 
age of his forest lair, and in turn looks defiantly 
about him for prey. Mary created him high admiral, 
and lost no opportunity to increase his power and 
honors. 

Lennox fled to England, and Murray to France. 

Parliament assembled two days after the judicial 
farce, and Bothwell was chosen, by Mary, to bear the 
crown and sceptre before her, when she entered the 
hall to make her opening speech. The sentence of 
the jury was ratified by the estates of Scotland, and 
the friends of Bothwell were rewarded. The Queen, 
to please the earl and conciliate the Presbyterians, 



176 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

abolished all statutes restricting the free enjoyment 
of divine worship according to the conscience of her 
Protestant subjects, and made provision for the poor 
clergy. But the stern Puritans were not so bribed, 
and maintained their attitude of condemnation of 
both herself, and the infamous noble, whose attentions 
to her were growing daily more offensive to her peo- 
ple. Even the market women would exclaim, as Mary 
passed, ' ; God preserve your grace, if you are sock- 
less * of the King's death." 

Bothwell had reached an elevation, from which he 
gazed upward to the dazzling summit of his hopes, 
with but two intervening objects — his wife, and the 
young prince. A divorce would remove the first, and 
the second he believed would disappear after he had 
secured the hand of Mary. These vaulting deeds 
were anticipated by discerning observers. Bothwell's 
might and revenge prevented the utterance to the 
Queen of the distressful apprehension. Lord Herries, 
however, with great moral courage, traveled with the 
speed of a courier to Edinburgh, and besought her 
not to marry a man universally thought to be the 
assassin of the King. Mary affected surprise, and 
denied the story. Failing in his mission, Lord Her- 
ries hastened from the danger while in Bothwell's 
reach, and by relays of horses, escaped to his distant 
castle. 

Melvil also mentioned the exciting subject to the 
Queen, who related the interview to Bothwell. The 
cautious Lethington apprised Melvil of his perilous 
loyalty, in the following conversation : " So soon as 

* Innocent. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 177 

the Earl Bothwell gets word, as I fear lie will, he will 
not fail to slay you. I pray you retire with dili- 
gence." " It is a sore matter," replied Melvil, " to 
see that good princess run to utter wreck, and nobody 
to forewarn her." " You have done more honestly 
than wisely," said Lethington. 

Bothwell was enraged, and sought Melvil's life, 
who secreted himself until Mary had calmed his pas- 
sions. The earl went fearlessly forward with his de- 
signs. On the 19th of April, when Parliament rose, 
he invited to a banquet the Earls of Morton, Argyle, 
Huntley, Cassilis, Glencairn, Rothes, Sutherland, 
Caithness, and Eglinton, with Lords Boyd, Seton, 
Sinclair, Semple, Oliphant, Oglivy, Ross, Haccat, 
Carlile, Hume, Inverneith, and others. Bothwell 
then informed the assembly, that, with the Queen's 
consent already given, he designed to marry her, and 
desired their assent. 

The place of festivity was environed with armed 
men, to overawe the guests. There was a sudden 
change in the aspect of that brilliant array of nobil- 
ity, and agitation was visible on all faces but the 
tyrant's, on whom they gazed with silent submission. 
The Earl of Eglinton, in the commotion of the suc- 
ceeding moments, made his escape. The rest bowed 
to the dictation of the successful admirer of their 
Queen, and the jeweled crown she wore. 

The memorial of the nobles, praying the Queen to 
marry Bothwell, after vindicating him in the Darn- 
ley affair, as a man " slandered by his evil willers 
and privy enemies ; " and enumerating his ancient 
honors, closes with this passage : 

" In moreover weighing and considering the time, 
12 



178 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

and present, and howe the Queen's Ma tie , our sover- 
aigne, is now destitute of husband, in which solitary 
state the common weale of this our native country, 
may not permit her hignes always to remain and in- 
dure, but at sometime her highnes in appearance may 
be inclined to yield to the marriage ; therefore, in case 
the affectionate and faithful service of the said Earl 
done to her Ma tie , prove true to him, and his other 
good qualities and behauiour may prove her Ma tie 
safer to humble herself (as prefering one of her own 
borne subjects unto all foreign princes) to take to 
husband the said Earl B., and every one us of under 
subscribed, uppon our honours, truthe and fidelite 
oblige us, and permit not only advance and forthward 
the said marriage to be solemnized complete betwixt 
her highnes and the said noble Lord with our wittes, 
counsayle, fortiflcacon and assistance in worde and 
deede, at suche times as it shall please her Ma tie to 
thinke, it convenient, and how soon the laws shall 
leave it to be done. But in case any would presume 
directly or indirectly, openly or under whatsoever 
colour or pretence, to hinder, hold back or disturb the 
said marriage, we shall in that behalf esteeme, hold 
and repute the hinderers and disturbers and adversa- 
ries thereof as comon enemies and evill willers, and, 
notwithstanding the same, take part and fortifie the 
said Erie to the said marriage as far as it please our 
said Soueraigne Ladie to allow, and therein shall . . 
and bestow our lives and goodes against all that live or 
die only. As we shall answer to God, and uppon our 
honor and fldelitie, and in case we doe the contrary 
never to have reputacion, honestie nor credit in our 
time hereafter, but he accompted unworthie faytheles 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 



1Y9 



Traytours. In witness of the which we have sub- 
scribed these particulars with our handes as followeth. 
At Ed 8 " the xix of Aprile, the year of our God 1567 
yeares. 

" To this the Queene gave her consent the night be- 
fore the marriage took place, which was the viii day 
of May the yeare of our God foresaid in this — . 

" The Queen's Ma tie , having seen and considered 
the bond aboue written, promised in the name of a 
Prince that she uows her successors shall never im- 
pute as cryme nor offence to any of the persons sub- 
scribed thereof their submycon or consent given to the 
matter conteyned therein, Nor that they nor there 
heires shall never be called or . therefore. Nor yet 
shall the said consent or subscribing be any derogation 
or spott to their honour or they . . . undutiful sub- 
jects for doing thereof, notwithstanding whatsoever 
thing may ... or be alleged on the contrary. In 
witnes whereof her Ma t,e hath subscribed the same 
with her own hand. 

" The names of such of the Mobility as subscribed 
to the Bond, so far as John Read might remember, 
of whom I had this Copy being his own hand. Be- 
ing commonly termed in Scotland Aynsters Supper. 

The Erles of Lords 



Murray 

Annie 
Huntley 
Cassiles 
Cathnesse 



Morton 
Sutherland 
Rothis 
Glencaren 



Boyd 

Seyton 

Sinclair 

Semple 



Rosse 
Harris 
Hume 
Eumermeth 



Oliphant Eglintoun sub- 

Oglivy scribed not but 

slipped away. 



180 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

Mary bad given her signature to a promise of mar- 
riage, as follows : 

" We, Mary, by the grace of God, Queen of Scot- 
land, Dowager of France, &c, promise faithfully, 
sincerely, and without constraint, James Hepburn, 
Earl of Boduil, never to have any other spouse and 
husband but him, and to take him for such whenever 
he shall require, in spite of the opposition of rela- 
tion, friend, or any others ; and as God has taken my 
late husband, Henry Stewart, called Darnley, and in 
consequence I am free, not being under the authority 
or either father or mother; I, therefore, protest that 
he, having the same liberty, I shall be ready to per- 
form the ceremony requisite for marriage, which I 
promise him before God, whom I call you to witness, 
and the subjoined signature, by my hand, written 
this . . . 

" Mary R." 

Bothwell, in the meantime, began to exhibit his un- 
restrained temper in uncivil deportment towards 
Mary, and insisted on the substitution of his sister in 
the place of Lady Beres, the Queen's confidant. An 
extract from a letter to the earl, will show the humil- 
iating thraldom of her heart: " I will take such (ser- 
vants) as shall content you for their conditions. I 
beseech you that an opinion of another person be not 
hurtful in your mind to my constancy. Mistrust me 
but when I will put you out of doubt, and clear my- 
self. Refuse it not, my dear life, and suffer me to 
make you some proof by my obedience, my faithful- 
ness, constancy, and voluntary subjection." Among 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 181 

the secret letters of the silver casket,* whose authen- 
ticity, though denied by partizans of Mary, has not 
been disproved, was found a contract, dated a week 
before Bothwell's acquittal, signed by her, commit- 
ting herself to the marriage. It was too recently that 
Darnley was buried to permit a wedding, and the 
only alternative was the resort to a ruse. It was ar- 
ranged that the earl should intercept the Queen, upon 
her return from a visit to the prince at Stirling- 
Castle, and with a superior force make her his cap- 
tive. 

This would afford an apology for submission, and 
slope the way to his feet, where she was panting to 
resign person and will to the embrace of her Moloch. 
Huntley, who was entrusted with the secret, used his 
persuasion to change her purpose. She immediately 
communicated her distrust of him to the earl. " He 
preached to me that it was a foolish enterprise, and 

* These are known as the Casket Letters. The Earl of 
Bothwell, on leaving Edinburgh for the Borders, left in the 
hands of Balfour, a silver casket which Mary had brought 
with her from France. Among the writings found in this 
casket was evidence of Mary's plotting against the life of 
Elizabeth. The charge, by the partizans of Mary, that the 
letters were forged was an afterthought, as no such plea was 
made during the debate upon the question in Parliament. 
Troude says that, had they been able to prove forgery, cr 
even plausibly to assert it, the whole of Europe would at once 
have been declared on Mary's side. See below, pp. 212-214. 

On the other hand, Andrew Lang concludes a full discus- 
sion of the subject, in an article in Blackwood's Magazine for 
December, 1890, in these words : " I began this paper strong 
in the faith that the Casket Letters were genuine. I end it 
in doubt ! " See also below, pp. 212-214. See also Dublin 
Review, 66 : 123. 



182 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

that with mine honor I could never marry yon seeing 
that being married you did carry me away, and that 
his folks would not suffer it, and that the lords would 
unsay themselves, and would deny that they had said. 
I told him that, seeing I was come so far, if you did 
not withdraw yourself of yourself, that no persua- 
sion, nor death itself, should make me fail of my 
promise." 

Again she addresses him on the subject of the ab- 
duction with enthusiasm : Ci As for the handling of 
myself, I heard it once well devised. Methinks that 
your services and long friendship, having the good 
will of the lords, do well deserve a pardon, if above 
the duty of a subject you advance yourself, not to 
constrain me, but to assure yourself of such high 
place nigh unto me, that other admonitions, or for- 
eign persuasions may not let (hinder) me from con- 
senting to that that you hope your service shall make 
you one day to attain ; and to be short, to make your- 
self sure of the lords, and free to marry; and that 
you are constrained for your safety, and to be able to 
serve me faithfully, to use an humble request, joined 
to an importunate action." 

There were unforseen obstacles to the success of the 
stratagem, which appeared as the time appointed ap- 
proached. The Earl of Sutherland declared that 
death was preferable to the Queen's capture while 
under his protection ; and Huntley was fearful of be- 
ing accused of infidelity and treachery in the adven- 
ture. Mary apprized Bothwell of these annoyances, 
and concludes: 

" I have thought good to advertise you of the fear 
he hath, that he should be charged and accused of 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 183 

treason, to the end that, without mistrusting him, you 
may be the more circumspect, and that you may have 
the more power; for we had yesterday more than 
three hundred horse of his and of Livingston's. For 
the honor of God be accompanied rather with more 
than less ; for that is the principal of my care." 

April 21st, 1567, Mary Stuart proceeded to Stir- 
ling Castle. The Earl of Mar, who had charge of 
young James, from some suspicion, refused admission 
to more than two ladies with the Queen, into the 
royal apartment. The 24th she left Stirling for 
Edinburgh, and at Almond Bridge was met by Both- 
well's force of six hundred horsemen. He seized 
Mary's horse by the bridle, and led her, without con- 
flict, to his Castle of Dunbar. Huntley, Melvil, and 
Lethington were taken with her into captivity. When 
Melvil complained of the rude treatment, Captain 
Blacater replied that it was with the Queen's consent. 
This royal and romantic forage of the earl, was the 
first act in the drama of guilty and suicidal passion ; 
the next was the divorce of Lady Jane Gordon, Both- 
well's wife. The Archbishop of St. Andrews was 
bribed to give the sentence of his court favorably; 
and on the 3d of May, the Catholic church, in behalf 
of Mary, and the Presbyterian church for the Protes- 
tant earl, declared the sentence of divorce. 

The same day the Queen returned to Edinburgh, 
with her accustomed cheerfulness and pageantry. 
When she came to the gates of the city, Bothwell, 
with great respect, laid his hand on the bridle of 
Mary's horse, and his soldiers then threw down their 
spears, as the signal that their sovereign was not only 
free, but her lover was no more than a humble, un« 



184 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

protected servant of her majesty. The Queen ex- 
pressed publicly her unconditional pardon of Both- 
well, and her determination to marry him. Notwith- 
standing the universal anticipation of the event, the 
distinct avowal of it by Mary Stuart sent a wave of 
burning indignation over the realm. When the order 
to publish the bans of marriage was sent to the Re- 
formed church, there was a prompt and spirited re- 
fusal. Knox was in England ; Craig, his representa- 
tive, gave the reason, that the Queen had not trans- 
mitted a written command. The justice clerk imme- 
diately furnished the paper, and Craig desired to 
meet the privy council. This was granted ; and when 
the fearless man of God confronted Bothwell, it was 
like the meeting of the Hebrew prophet and Ahab, 
while the sanguinary monarch quailed before the 
fiery denunciations of the untremulous reprover. He 
charged home upon the astonished noble his crimes, 
and set before him " righteousness, temperance, and a 
judgment to come." Having cleared his conscience, 
he read in the sanctuary the hated bans, and added : 
" I take heaven and earth to witness, that I abhor 
and detest this marriage, as odious and slanderous to 
the world, and I would exhort the faithful to pray 
earnestly that a union against all reason and good 
conscience may yet be overruled by God, to the com- 
fort of this unhappy realm." 

Unmoved in her delirium of love by outward com- 
motion, Mary, on the 12th of May, appeared in the 
High Court of Edinburgh, and made a declaration of 
her entire reconciliation to Bothwell, and her inten- 
tion to increase his honors. He was made Duke of 
Orkney and Shetland, receiving the coronet from the 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 185 

hand of the Queen. Two days later, she signed the 
marriage contract ; and the next morning at 4 o'clock 
the nuptials were celebrated in Holyrood Palace ac- 
cording to Catholic form, and in the Protestant 
church by Bishop of Orkney. The attendance of the 
nobility was small, and there was in the event, instead 
of joy heralding future good to the popular mind, 
something deeply ominous of coming evil. The tid- 
ings spread with the morning light, like a political 
and moral eclipse, darkening the land. On the palace 
gates was found this significant line from Ovid : 

" Mense malas maio nubere vulgus ait." 

It is not strange that with such tokens, an unholy 
alliance, consummated within three months after 
Darnley's death, the wedding day should be distin- 
guished by a domestic quarrel. De Croc wrote to 
Catherine and Charles IX., of Prance, on the revolt- 
ing affair : 

" Your majesties could not do better than be very 
displeased with the marriage, for it is a very unfor- 
tunate one, and already is repented of. On Thursday 
(May 15th) her majesty sent for me to inquire 
whether I had perceived any strangeness between her 
and her husband ; which she wished to excuse to me, 
saying, that if I saw she was sorrowful, it was because 
she would not rejoice, as she says she never will again, 
and desires only death. Yesterday (May 16th) be- 
ing both in a closet with the Earl of Bothwell, she 
called out aloud for some one to give her a knife that 
she might kill herself. Those who were in the adjoin- 



186 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

ing room heard her. They think that unless God aids 
her, she will fall into despair." 

The storm passed, and Mary dispatched ambassa- 
dors to foreign courts to obtain their recognition of 
Bothwell as her lawful husband. She affirmed that 
her nobility urged the marriage, and the brilliant 
qualities of the faithful lord entitled him to the dis- 
tinction. Apologizing for Bothwell's violence, she 
directed the Bishop of Dumblane, commissioned to 
France and Rome, to add that the civil commotions 
in her kingdom made an alliance with a foreign 
prince impossible, while among her own subjects the 
Earl of Bothwell was prominent, incomparably so, in 
wisdom, heroism, and ancestral honors. She there- 
fore yielded without repugnance to the wish of the 
three estates of her realm. Melvil, who went to the 
court of Elizabeth, was to offer Bothwell's acquittal 
in reply to the suspicion of his connection with Darn- 
ley's murder, and his legal divorce, in answer to 
the charge of marrying while another wife was 
living. 

Bothwell wrote to the Queen of England in a royal 
strain. He said : " Men of greater birth might have 
been preferred to the high station I now occupy, but 
none could have been chosen more zealous for the 
preservation of your majesty's friendship, of which 
you shall have experience at any time it may be your 
pleasure to employ me." Having gathered into his 
hands the reins of authority in Scotland, he anticipa- 
ted quick success in the endeavor to gain the favor 
of the adjacent powers. But beneath this apparent 
calm, were dark and turbulent elements of retribu- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 187 

tion. The triumphs of lawless affection and advanc- 
ing greatness, were like the delusive tranquillity and 
glare of a torrid day, when it is the prelude to an 
earthquake's desolating march. A league, dating 
back before the marriage of Mary, had bound together 
in confederation against Bothwell, the principal no- 
bles of Scotland. And now that Bothwell aspired to 
remove the prince from his path of homicidal glory, 
and the might to do it was already in his grasp, the 
slumbering rebellion awoke. It was the ripe harvest 
of embittered feeling which the Laird of Grange had 
expressed in a communication to Earl of Bedford, 
about the time of Mary's seizure bv Bothwell : " This 
Queen will never cease unto such time as she have 
wrecked all the honest men of this realm. She was 
minded to cause Bothwell to ravish (seize) her, to the 
end that she may the sooner end the marriage which 
she promised before she caused Bothwell to murder 
her husband. There is many that would revenge the 
murder, but they fear your mistress. I am so suited 
for to enterprize the revenge, that I must either take 
it upon hand, or else I must leave the country, the 
which I am determined to do, if I can obtain license. 
I pray your lordship, let me know what your mistress 
will do, for if we will seek France, we may find favor 
at their hands." In a letter addressed a few days 
later to Bedford, he gives an outline of the proposed 
campaign : 

" The heads that presently they agreed upon, is, 
first, to seek the liberty of the Queen, who is rav- 
ished and detained by the Earl of Bothwell, who was 
the ravisher, and hath the strengths, munitions and 



188 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

men of war at his commandment. The next head is, 
the preservation and keeping of the prince. The 
third is, to pursue them that murdered the King. 
For the pursuit of these three heads, they have prom- 
ised to bestow their lives, lands and goods. And to 
that effect their lordships have desired me to write 
unto your lordship, to the end they might have your 
sovereign's aid and support for suppressing of the 
cruel murderer, Bothwell, who, at the Queen's last 
being in Stirling, suborned certain to have poisoned 
the prince ; for that barbarous tyrant is not contented 
to have murdered the father, but he would also cut 
off the son, for fear that he hath to be punished here- 
after. The names of the lords that convened in Stir- 
ling was the Earls of Argyle, Morton, Athol, and 

Mar There is to be joined with the four 

forenamed lords, the Earls of Glencairn, Cassilis, 
Eglinton, Montrose, Caithness; the Lords Boyd, 
Ochiltree, Ruthven, Drummond, Gray, Glammis, In- 
nermeith, Lindsay, Hume and Herries." 

As an index of the prevalent disaffection, there is 
the fact of Melvil's connection with the civil out- 
break, who was Mary's favorite, and minister to Eng- 
land just before the open revolt. He united his ap- 
peal with the lairds to Elizabeth, for aid in avenging 
the King's death, and touched a chord of anxious in- 
terest, by intimating that France would come to their 
help, if she refused. 

In the secret instructions of Charles IX. to De 
Croc, we have a glimpse of Mary's reputation in his 
court, and his purpose, rather than let Scotland be 
absorbed by England, to desert the Queen, and assist 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 189 

the rebellious nobles. " The said Sieur de Villeroy 
will say, that his majesty having made known to him 
the opinion which he entertains of the pitiable suc- 
cess of the affairs of the Queen of Scotland, seeing 
what has been written to him of her behavior by the 
said Sieur de Croc, and the strange news which he 
has received from other quarters ; and being also con- 
cerned that the enterprise of the said lords is secretly 
assisted and favored by the English — whose charity 
would only entail their ruin — the King wishes the 
said Sieur de Croc to know, that the desire and prin- 
cipal intention of his majesty is to keep the kingdom 
of Scotland in its attachment to himself, without per- 
mitting it, under the pretext of the many follies 
which are committed, to rebel and alienate itself from 
its attachment to himself, as it is certain it would do 
toward the said English, whom the said lords would 
seek as their protectors in this affair, if they saw they 
would have no assurance from the King." 

De Croc accordingly offered men and munitions of 
war to the revolutionary party, who also sought the 
favor of Elizabeth. Her policy fluctuated between 
her cherished opposition to the rebellion of subjects 
against their prince, and her apprehension of French 
influence and strength in Scotland. She abhorred 
civil revolt, but she feared France more ; and Melvil 
received intimations that the confederates might an- 
ticipate aid from the Queen of England. 

Although the forces of the nobility augmented 
daily, Mary was fearless, in her ignorance of their 
movements, of impending danger. Bothwell, by an 
attempt to assassinate Lethington, had driven him to 
the protection of his friend, the Earl of Athol, where 



190 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

he planned the furtherance of the formidable league. 
Meanwhile, the demand was made by the successor of 
Darnley, for the control of young James. The Earl 
of Mar, his guardian, refused, unless the prince were 
placed in Edinburgh Castle, under the care of an hon- 
orable, irreproachable governor. But this ambitious 
design was checked by the distinct tokens of battle. 
Mary was at Borthwick Castle, ten miles from the 
capital, whither she went to escape the troubled at- 
mosphere of her follies. The nobles had disregarded 
her summons to engage in a campaign to the frontier, 
under the command of Bothwell ; and he hastened in 
alarm to the Queen. Barely had he arrived, when 
the Earls of Morton, Montrose, and others, leading an 
army of ten thousand horsemen, marched toward 
Borthwick Castle. Lord Hume pressed on in ad- 
vance of the main force, with eight hundred men, to 
seize Bothwell by surprise. He had, however, es- 
caped and on the 10th of June, Mary, disguised in 
male apparel, under cover of darkness, fled on horse- 
back, and rejoining Bothwell a few miles distant, 
rode with him to his Castle of Dunbar, which they 
entered at three o'clock in the morning, fully con- 
scious that something more than royal pastime was be- 
fore them. The revolutionists, thwarted in their first 
bold push to the enclosure of sovereignty, moved 
down upon Edinburgh. Along the line of march ad- 
ditions were made to their ranks, until, when, on the 
11th of June, they arrived at the metropolis, they 
numbered three thousand armed soldiers. The citi- 
zens proclaimed their adherence to the cause of the 
confederates. 

James Balfour, who had been left by Bothwell in 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 191 

command of the castle, instead of directing his ord- 
nance against the rebels, signified his willingness to 
enter the league. Immediately, the triumphant in- 
vaders issued the following proclamation : 

" That whereas, the Queen's majesty, being de- 
tained in captivity, was neither able to govern her 
realm, nor try the murder of her husband, we of the 
nobility and council command all the subjects, spec- 
ially the burghers of Edinburgh, to assist the said 
noblemen and council in delivering the Queen and 
preserving the prince, and in trying and punishing 
the King's murderers. And we command the lords of 
session, commissaries, and all other judges, to sit and 
do justice according to the laws of this realm, not- 
withstanding any tumult that may arise in the time 
of this enterprise ; with certification to all who shall 
be found acting contrary to these proceedings, that 
they shall be reputed as fautors of the said murder, 
and punished as traitors." 

The order was then given to march against Both- 
well, who was charged with violence toward the 
Queen, an unlawful marriage, murder, and designs 
upon the prince royal. In two days, Mary and Both- 
well had gathered twenty-five hundred men, and left 
Dunbar on the 14th of June, reaching, the next day, 
Gladsmoor, when the Queen made to her diminutive 
army the following address : 

" That a number of conspirators, having discovered 
the latest motive, borne to her and the Duke of Ork- 
ney, her husband, after they had failed in apprehend- 



192 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

ing their persons at Borthwick, had made a seditious 
proclamation to make the people believe that they 
did seek the revenge of the murder of the King, her 
late husband, and the relieving of herself out of bon- 
dage and captivity, pretending that the duke, her 
husband, was minded to invade the prince, her son; 
all which were false and forged inventions, none hav- 
ing better cause to revenge the King's death than 
herself, if she could know the authors thereof. And 
for the duke, her present husband, he had used all 
means to clear his innocence, the ordinary justice had 
absolved him, and the estates of Parliament approved 
their proceedings, which they themselves that made 
the present insurrection had likewise allowed. As, 
also, he had offered to maintain that quarrel against 
any gentleman on earth undef amed, than which noth- 
ing more could be required. And as to her alleged 
captivity, the contrary was known to the whole sub- 
jects, her marriage with him being publicly con- 
tracted and solemnized, with their own consents, as 
their hand-writs could testify. Albeit, to give their 
treason a fair show, they made now a buckler of the 
prince, her son, being an infant, and in their hands ; 
whereas their intention only was to overthrow her 
and her posterity, that they might rule all things at 
their pleasure, and without controlroent." 

With promises of reward for loyalty, the Queen 
rode forward beneath the folds of the royal standard, 
attired in a red dress, which reached only to her 
knees. She reached Carberry Hill, six miles from 
the capital, and took her position. The hostile army, 
having heard of her progress, hastened before the 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 193 

break of day, Sunday morning, toward the entrench- 
ments of their beautiful and resolute sovereign. On 
one of their banners was pictured the slain Darnley, 
lying beneath the tree where he was found, with the 
prince kneeling beside the ghastly form, and under 
the exciting scene was the motto, " Judge and avenge 
my cause, Lord!' 1 The flaunting colors sent a 
thrill of fearful enthusiasm through the ranks, and 
visibly moved the populace. The insurgents threw 
up their fortifications on the heights of Musselburgh, 
about a mile from Carberry Hill. A little stream 
ran between the foes, who lay in full view of each 
other. ]STot greatly unequal in numbers, they were 
more widely different in character and feeling. The 
nobility and the ardor were both against Mary Stuart. 
There was along the lines of the confederates, where 
shone the badges of haughty earls and powerful 
barons, a furnace-glow of revenge — a panting to pun- 
ish murder, and subdue a scorned usurper. 

At this crisis, De Croc, the French ambassador, 
endeavored, in the name of Charles, his king, to con- 
ciliate the parties, and save a bloody conflict. The 
lords offered to withdraw from the battle-field, if the 
Queen would at once and forever separate herself 
from the odious Bothwell. They offered further, to 
meet him in single combat, according to his former 
challenge, if he would come forth between the armies. 
De Croc unwillingly bore the terms of loyalty to 
Mary. He crossed the valley, and found the Queen 
sitting on a green mound, her features kindling with 
determination and hope. After the usual salutations, 
he began by representing the nobles as still her true, 
though offended subjects, when Miary interrupted 

13 



194 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

with these words : " They show their affection very 
ill, by running counter to what they have signed, 
and by accusing the man whom they acquitted, and to 
whom they married me." 

She expressed a readiness to receive them upon du- 
tiful submission. " At this moment Bothwell came 
up. 'Is it of me that they complain ? ' he said to De 
Croc, in a voice loud enough to be heard by his army. 
' I have just been speaking to them/ replied De Croc 
as loudly, ' and they have assured me that they are 
the Queen's very humble subjects and servants ; and 
your mortal enemies,' he added in a lower tone, ' since 
you will know it' 'What have I done to them?' 
answered Bothwell in the same tone, as if desirous to 
communicate his own assurance to those who heard 
him, and did not feel so bold as himself. ' I have 
never caused displeasure to a single one of them ; on 
the contrary, I have sought to consult them all. What 
they are doing is out of envy for my greatness. For- 
tune is free to any who can receive her ; and there is 
not a man among them who would not like to be in 
my place.' He then proposed, in order to prevent 
bloodshed, to fight between the two armies, although 
he had had the honor to espouse the Queen, any of his 
enemies who might leave their ranks, provided he 
were a gentleman. The Queen opposed this proposi- 
tion, saying that she would not allow anything of the 
kind, and that his quarrel was hers also." 

By this time, the army in rebellion had passed the 
stream, and Bothwell retired to join his standard, and 
De Croc went to Morton and Glencairn, with the of- 
fer of pardon, if they would obey their Queen. " We 
have not come here," said Glencairn, " to solicit par- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 195 

don for ourselves, but rather to give it to those who 
have offended." " We are in arms," added Morton, 
" not against the Queen, but against the Duke of 
Orkney, the murderer of her husband. Let him be 
delivered up, or let her majesty remove him from her 
company, and we shall yield her obedience." 

Donning their casques, they ended the parley, and 
De Croc repaired to Edinburgh. Each army, accord- 
ing to usage, dismounted, and prepared to fight on 
foot. The royal force were irresolute, and demanded 
a personal combat between Bothwell and a champion 
from the enemy. The daring duke consented. Mary 
was compelled to submit, because her ranks were 
failing. After rejecting the Laird of Tullebardene 
on account of inferior rank, Bothwell selected Mor- 
ton, who immediately prepared to contend with two- 
handed swords. Lindsay demanded the honor, as a 
servant of the assassinated King, and kneeling in 
view of the whole army, prayed in a clear voice for 
strength to vanquish his guilty foe. While Mary was 
hesitating whether to permit the duel, her soldiers 
were deserting; a detachment of confederates had 
swept around the hill, cutting off the possibility of 
Bothwell's retreat toward Dunbar. Mary yielded to 
the emergency, and consented to dismiss the duke, her 
husband, and attend the insurgents to the capital, on 
the terms of his safe return to Dunbar, and their re- 
newed obedience. Then followed a brief and affect- 
ing interview between Mary and Bothwell on Car- 
berry Hill. Mutual pledges of fidelity were given, 
and mounting his horse in company with a few 
friends, he rode fleetly toward his castle. The separ- 
ation, though neither knew it, was final. Sorrow- 



196 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

fully, yet confidingly, Mary approached the Laird 
of Grange, who had hemmed in Bothwell just before 
by his military manoeuvre, and extending her deli- 
cate hand, which he kissed, submitted to his guidance. 
He took the bridle of her horse and conducted her into 
the bosom of the opposing army. They reverently 
received the Queen, who said : 

" My lords, I am come to you, not out of any fear 
I had of my life, nor yet doubting of the victory, if 
matters had gone to the worst ; but I abhor the shed- 
ding of Christian blood, especially of those that are 
my own subjects; and therefore I yield to you, and 
will be ruled hereafter by your counsels, trusting you 
will respect me as your born princess and Queen." 

The utterance of attachment to her, the condemna- 
tion of Bothwell, and insults of the common soldiery, 
were the commingling voices that fell upon her ear. 
But it was soon apparent that professions of obedi- 
ence were like " the morning cloud and early dew." 

" The march commenced ; from the Queen's man- 
ner, it was supposed she anticipated a rescue, and in 
reality a party composed of the Hamiltons had ad- 
vanced for that purpose, but she was soon convinced 
her expectations were hopeless. When she approached 
the capital, a new trial awaited her, and she beheld 
the multitude poured forth, not to relieve or even 
to commisserate her distresses, but to display before 
her eyes a bloody ensign, on which was represented 
the young prince, kneeling and invoking vengeance on 
the authors of his father's murder. At this fright- 
ful image, Mary almost fell from her horse, and, 
bursting into an agony of tears, exclaimed, — " I am 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 197 

your native princess ! descended from the blood of 
Bruce ! Treat me not thus ! " Her appeal was unre- 
garded. Even in the women, — her disheveled hair, 
her tears, her anguish, awakened no pity ; and she 
proceeded, amidst loud execrations, till she reached 
the provost's house, where she was lodged for that 
night." 

The hours of darkness were devoted to lamenta- 
tions — cries for help — and piteous expressions of de- 
spair. In the morning, the barbarous soldiery waved 
before her window the tragic flag; when Mary raved 
like a lunatic, and with disheveled and neglected ap- 
parel, begged in the name of God for deliverance. 
The lords partially calmed her excitement with in- 
timations of restoration to Holyrood and liberty. 
But her unalterable devotion to Bothwell, displayed 
in conversation and communications, affirmed to have 
been sent to him at Dunbar, through a bribed mes- 
senger, decided her captors to run no farther hazard 
of Avar, and their own remorseless execution. At 
eight o'clock in the evening, Mary was removed to 
Holyrood Palace, escorted by three hundred hack- 
butters. The lords then sat in -council, and made out 
the order for her imprisonment. They set forth the 
necessity of taking arms; her surrender; and Both- 
well' s flight ; adding, " after they had opened and de- 
clared unto her highness her own estate and condi- 
tion, and the miserable estate of their realm, with 
the danger that her dearest son, the prince, stood in, 
requiring that she would suffer and command the 
said murder and authors thereof to be punished, they 
found in her majesty such untowardness and repug- 
nance thereto, that rather she appeared to fortify and 



198 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

maintain the said Earl Botbwell and his accomplices 
in the said wicked crimes, nor to suffer justice to pass 
forward; whereby, if her highness should be left in 
that state, to follow her own inordinate passion, it 
would not fail to succeed to the final confusion and 
extermination of the whole realm. So that, after 
mature consultation, by common advice, it is thought 
convenient, concluded and decreed, that her majesty's 
person be sequestered from all society of the said Earl 
Bothwell, and from all having of intelligence Avith 
him or any others, whereby he may have any comfort 
to escape due punishment for his demerits. And 
finding no place more meet or commodious for her 
majesty to remain in than the house and place of 
Lochleven, ordains, commands, and charges Patrick 
Lord Lindsay of the Byres, William Lord Kuthven, 
and William Douglas of Lochleven, to pass and con- 
voy her majesty to the said place of Lochleven, and 
the said lords to receive her therein, and there they 
are every one of them to keep her majesty surely, 
within the said place, and in nowise to suffer her to 
pass forth of the same, or to have intelligence from 
any manner of persons, or yet to send advertisements 
or directions for intelligence with any living persons, 
except in their own presence and audience, or by the 
commandments and directions of the lords under sub- 
scribing, or part of them representing the council at 
Edinburgh, or otherwise where they shall resort for 
the time, as they will answer to God, and upon their 
duty, to the commonweal of this country, keeping 
these presents for their warrant ! " 

In the night of June 10th, Mary, without a ret- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 199 

inue, " mounted on a sorry hackney," attired in 
coarse cassock, and guarded by the savage Ruthven 
and Lindsay, entered Lochleven Castle. This for- 
tress lies north of Edinburgh, on a small island in the 
middle of the lake. The buildings covered nearly 
half of the land, and on three sides the waters laved 
the naked walls. The remaining side had a garden to 
relieve the view. The deep basement was a dungeon 
for solitary imprisonment. The only entrance to the 
square tower, which was the family residence, was 
through a window in the second story, by a ladder, 
raised and lowered with a chain. Mary was confined 
in an octagonal tower at one corner of the massive 
pile. The distance to the shore was half a mile. The 
castle was owned by William Douglas, half brother 
of Murray, whose mother, Margaret Erskine, for- 
merly mistress of James V., Mary Stuart's father, 
was the Queen's mortal enemy. She was the wreck 
of a beauty, and proud as a Roman in her old age, 
boasting that her son, born of King James, was law- 
ful heir to the throne of Scotland. She also embraced 
the extreme view of the Puritans, and became an in- 
tolerant partizan. To her tender mercies Mary was 
committed. The captivity of a sovereign, to her sub- 
jects was a novel and startling event. While Europe 
had been the arena of revolutionary conflicts, till 
these games of oppressive, unprincipled monarchs, 
and the outraged masses, were familiar horrors, this 
sacrilegious invasion of the royal prerogative, was an 
alarming precedent. But such was the loss of popu- 
lar interest in Mary at home, that the timorous 
friends of the Queen were quite indifferent to her 
fate. Philip of Spain was busy with a revolt in 



200 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

Netherlands ; and Elizabeth only, to the surrounding 
monarchs, gave token of decided solicitude in the 
issue of the daring arrest. She was indignant at the 
lawlessness of the rebels in the confinement of Mary's 
person ; yet she feared the captive as a rival. And 
while she sent a letter of condolence to the prisoner 
of Lochleven, another conveyed her sympathy and 
offers of support to the insurgents. Poor Mary ! 
Deserted and environed with gloomy walls that were 
washed with lonely waters ; watched by Elizabeth, 
whose imperious gaze was always resting on the as- 
piring daughter of Stuart; and, worse than a widow 
— what hours of reflection were hers ! But ambition 
ruled the woman, and she was unchastened with the 
satire which the tragical romance of her fate made 
upon human greatness. v " 



CHAPTER VI. 

On the 20th of June, Mary's peril was greatly in- 
creased by circumstances which are related by Mig- 
net : " George Dalgleish, BothwelPs chamberlain, had 
been arrested with a casket which he was, doubtless, 
conveying to Dunbar, and which contained some pri- 
vate papers that furnished decided proofs of Mary's 
guilt. This casket was made of silver, overgilt with 
gold, and surmounted with the cypher of Francis II., 
who had given it to Mary. Mary, in her turn, had 
given it to Bothwell, who had inclosed in it some let- 
ters which she had written to him in her own hand- 
writing, both before and after the murder of the 
King, some sonnets breathing the most passionate af- 
fection for him, and a contract of marriage which 
she had signed some time before the premeditated sur- 
prise at Almond Bridge." Bothwell had, doubtless, 

* " Ane silver-box owergilt with gold, with all missive let- 
teris, oontractis or obligationis, for marriage-sonetis or luif- 
balletis, and all utheris letteriscontenit thairin, send and past 
betwixt the Quene, our said Soverane Lordis moder, and 
James, sumtyme Erie Bothuile, quhilk box and haill pieces 
within the samyn were takin and fund with umquhill George 
Dangleisch, servand to the Erie Bothuile, upon the xx day of 
June, the zeir of God, 1567 zeiris." Discharge to my Lord 
Morton, given on the 16th of September, 1568, by Murray to 
Morton, (who, ever since the 22d of June, 1567, had kept pos- 

201 



202 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

preserved these papers as guarantees against the pos- 
sible inconstancy of the Queen. He had left the cas- 
ket in Edinburgh Castle, under the care of two of his 
accomplices, George Dalgleish and James Balfour. 
Either by chance, or by the perfidy of the odious Bal- 
four,* who, like many others, had joined the con- 
federacy under the pretext of punishing a crime to 
which he had been a party, Dalgleish had been seized, 
and the papers secured. Powrie, BothwelPs porter, 
met the same fate. When examined before a court of 
justice on the 23d and 26th of June, they had both 
confessed how the plot against the King's life had 
been contrived and executed. The depositions of 
these two servants of Bothwell had furnished a surer 
basis for the prosecution of that great criminal ; and 
the lords of the secret council commanded that he 
should be seized in his Castle of Dunbar, and con- 
ducted to Edinburgh, to be punished as the murderer 
of the King. But whilst the confessions of Powrie 
and Dalgleish placed BothwelPs culpability beyon$ 

session of the silver box,) in presence of Lord Lindsay, the 
Bishop of Orkney, the Commendator of Dunfermline, the 
Commendator of Salmerinoch, Mr. Secretary Lethington, the 
Justice Clerk, and Master Henry Balnaves. See Keith, Ap- 
pendix, p. 140. In a letter from Throckmorton to Queen 
Elizabeth, dated Edinburgh, 25th July, 1567, allusion is made 
to the discovery of these papers in the following terms : 
"They mean to charge her with the murder of her husband, 
whereof they say they have as apparent proof against her as 
may be, as well by testimony of her oxen handwriting, which 
they have recovered, as also by sufficient witnesses." (See 
Keith, p. 426.) 

* " Bothwell sent a servant to Sir James Balfour to save a 
little silver cabinet which the Queen had given him. Sir 
James Balfour delivers the cabinet to the messenger, and 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 203 

doubt, the papers found in the silver casket furnished 
terrible weapons against the Queen to those who 
wished to accuse and destroy her." * 

under-hand, giveth advice of it to the lords. In this cabinet 
had Both well kept the letters of privacy he had from the 
Queen ; thus he kept her letters to be an awe-bond upon her, 
in case her affections should change. By the taking of this 
cabinet, many particulars betwixt the Queen and Both well 
were clearly discovered. These letters were after printed ; 
they were in French, with some sonnets of her own making.' 
(Knox's History of the Reformation, vol. ii., p. 562.) 

* The annexed note gives a strong and interesting denial of 
the genuineness of the letters in the casket : 

" It is, forsooth, a boxe of letters taken from one Daighleysh, 
who was executed for the Lorde Darnley's death, the Earles 
man, for sooth ; whiche letters he received at Edenborough 
of one Sir James Balfoure, to convey to his master ; Thus say 
they, but we say to you, as is sayd in Terrence, Non sunt hgec 
satis divisa temporibus. The very time, if nothing else were, 
bewraieth you, and your whole cause withal. Is it to be 
thought, that either the Earle would send to the said Sir 
James, who had before assisted the faction against the Quene 
with the force and strength of Edenborough Castle, and driven 
from thence the very Earle himselfe, or that the said Sir 
James would send any such thing to the Earle ? is it likely ? 
is it credible ? Had the forger and inventour of this tale, by 
spemely conveyance parted and divided the distinction of his 
times? How say ye? Whereas nowe it is in no case to be 
supposed or conjectured that such a wise vertuous ladie would 
sende any such letters ; yet putting the case, that she had 
sent them, it is not to be thought, that either the receaver 
thereof, or that she herselfe, whom ye conceave to have sent 
them, would have suffered them, for the hasarding of her 
estimation and honour, to remaineundefaced, namely, seeing 
there was a special mention made, and warning given forth- 
with to burn them." (Lesley's Defence of Queen Mary's 
Honour': Anderson's Collections, vol. i.) 



204 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

At this exciting juncture, Melvil arrived, and saw 
Mary, in the presence of Lindsay and Ruthven, who 
complained in her unshaken confidence toward her 
tried servant, that they were not allowed a private 
interview. Melvil was not a treacherous man, but his 
sympathies for distracted Scotland evidently led him 
to the standard of revolt; he expected no deliverance 
from thickening distress, under the reign of the 
Queen. Soon after this mission, Elizabeth dis- 
patched Throckmorton, to confer with the nobles in 
regard to Mary's liberation and conditional restora- 
tion to her throne. The situation of the Queen of 
England was exceedingly delicate and difficult. 
Mary had asserted her right to the sceptre of Britain, 
and there were princes ready to sustain the claim, 
when the opportunity appeared. France and Spain 
were Avaiting to snatch the favorable turn to civil 
commotion, to advance the cause of papal Home. 

To dispose of the royal captive, was not an easy 
act of sovereign interposition. If restored to the 
realm in rebellion, an invincible armv must be her 
train ; if permitted to revisit France, it would give 
the Catholic cause a mighty advantage. The gifted 
and determined prisoner was no imaginary rival. 
And yet Elizabeth was so thoroughly a monarchist, 
that she hated insurrection, even by an abused and 
oppressed people. Her proposals, in the conflicting 
appeals to her power, were, after rebuking the Queen 
for her marriage of Bothwell, and the nobles for dis- 
loyalty : that Mary be divorced, and enthroned ; that 
the abandoned duke and his associates be punished ; 
" that the Castles of Dunbar and Dumbarton should 
be entrusted to the keeping of those nobles who were 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 205 

hostile to Bothwell ; that a Parliament should be as- 
sembled, which should appoint the wardens of the 
marches, and the governors of Edinburgh, Stirling, 
Inchkeith, and the other strongholds of the king- 
dom ; that a great council should be established, at 
which five or six of its members should always be 
present, without whose advice and consent the Queen 
should be unable to pass any act or make any ap- 
pointment; and, finally, that a general amnesty 
should be proclaimed. 7 ' 

Lethington, Melvil and Lord Hume, instead of ac- 
ceding to the views of Elizabeth, emphatically ac- 
cused her of political indecision, and a vacillating 
policy, which would soon be the ruin of the kingdom, 
if Mary were invested with authority. John Knox, 
who had returned, upon learning of the Queen's im- 
prisonment, pledged to the dominant party, the entire 
support of the Presbyterians, if they would ratify the 
statutes of 1560, which Mary had refused to sanction. 
The offer was accepted, and the last remnant of Po- 
pery was doomed, by the new order of things, to ex- 
tinction ; and the Protestant faith was made the re- 
ligion of all the universities and public schools. The 
young prince was to have a Puritan education ; and, 
" to maintain the true religion now professed in the 
kirk of Scotland, and suppress all things contrary 
to it," was added to the coronation oath. The Re- 
formers advocated the moral equality of Christians, 
and denied the inviolability of kings; and referred 
for precept and examples to the Bible. Knox openly 
denounced the Queen, and Buchanan affirmed that 
insubordination was the right of the people, when the 
crimes of the sovereign furnished the occasion. These 



206 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

opinions, maintained by men of intellect and severe 
morality, and sharpened with conscientious hostility 
to the Catholic dogmas, penetrated the common mind, 
and carried their less thoughtful advocates into the 
extremes of cruel fanaticism. The church presented 
a formal request that the late King's death might be 
avenged, " according to the laws of God, according 
to the practices of their own realm, and according to 
the laws which they call jus gentium, without respect 
of any person." Some of the lords dissented from 
the summary view, and demanded only Mary's di- 
vorce from Bothwell, and her return to the regal pal- 
ace. Others wished to restore her to liberty, and re- 
quiring her abdication in favor of James, compel 
her to retire to France. While a third faction loudly 
urged that the Queen should be tried for murder, de- 
throned publicly, and confined in perpetual captivity. 
July 8th and 15th, Melvil visited Mary in prison, 
to negotiate, if possible, a divorce. But she was deaf 
to his importunity, and assured him that she would 
sooner sacrifice her throne than Bothwell. It was a 
fatal infatuation, that rendered Mary Stuart, amid 
all her augmenting dangers, and the counsel of Eng- 
land, France, and private advisers, unapproachable 
on the subject of abandoning Bothwell, who had al- 
ready brought her to the dizzy margin of hopeless 
overthrow. 

" The Queen's obstinate determination not to de- 
sert Bothwell alarmed and irritated the lords of the 
secret council. They resolved to preclude the possi- 
bility of her doing them any future injury, by depos- 
ing her. This deposition was prepared under the 
form of a voluntary abdication, which would deprive 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 207 

her of power without degrading her. Three acts were 
accordingly drawn up for Mary Stuart's signature. 
By the first, she renounced the government of the 
kingdom, declaring it w T as a burden of which she was 
weary, and which she no longer had strength or will 
to bear; and authorized the immediate coronation of 
her son. The second and third conferred the re- 
gency on the Earl of Murray, during the minority of 
the young King; and appointed the Duke of Chatel- 
lerault, with the Earls of Lennox, Argyle, Morton, 
Athol, Glencairn, and Mar, regents of the kingdom 
till the return of Murray from France, with power to 
continue in that high office, if he refused it. In case 
Mary Stuart should refuse to sign these acts, the as- 
sembled lords had determined to prosecute and con- 
demn her for these three crimes — * First, for breach 
and violation of their laws ; secondly, for inconti- 
nency as well with the Earl Both well, as with others ; 
and thirdly, for the murder of her husband, whereof, 
they say, they have as apparent proof against her as 
may be, as well by the testimony of her own hand- 
writing, as also by sufficient witnesses.' 

" On the morning of the 25th of July, the fero- 
cious Lindsay, and the insinuating Melvil, left Edin- 
burgh on their way to Lochleven.* One was the 
bearer of the three acts which were to strip her of 
her authority ; the other was directed to warn the 
Queen of the dangers to which she would expose her- 
self by refusing to sign them. Melvil saw her first, 

* Lochleven is a small lake in the county of Kinross, about 
twenty miles northwest of Edinburgh. The castle in which 
Mary was confined is on a small island near the town of 
Kinross. 



208 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

and told her all. That a public trial would be sub- 
stituted for an abdication, that the hostility of the 
lords towards her would become implacable, that her 
defamation would be certain and the loss of her crown 
inevitable, and that her life would probably be en- 
dangered, were some of the consequences which Mel- 
vil assured Mary Stuart would result from refusal; 
whilst he did not fail to insinuate on the other hand, 
that any deed signed in captivity, and under fear 
of death would be invalid." 

Mary was unyielding, though agitated with con- 
flicting emotions of hope and despondency, when 
the stern Lindsay entered, with the acts of the secret 
council. The terror of his presence decided the hes- 
itating Queen. Her eyes were suffused with tears, 
and, with a tremulous hand, she signed the papers. 
Lindsay then demanded from Thomas Sinclair the 
privy seal, and the work was finished. On the 29th 
of July, the nobles gathered at Stirling to crown the 
prince royal. The Hamiltons, who were a strong 
faction, opposed the coronation, and had resolved to 
deliver the Queen. Throckmorton, Elizabeth's am- 
bassador, refrained from the shadow of approval, and 
admonished the lords to take no rash measures. He 
awaited his sovereign's instructions, and soon received 
them, in a strain of withering indignation against 
the insurgents. After repudiating with scorn the 
right to be judges of their ruler, she continued : 

" What warrant have they in Scripture, being sub- 
jects, to depose their prince ; but contrary, and that 
with express words in St. Paul, who, to the Romans,* 

* Mary seems to have had in mind Romans xiii : 1. " Let 
every soul be subject unto the higher powers." But the 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 209 

commanded them to obey potcstatibus supereminenti- 
oribus gladium gestantibus, although it is well known 
that rulers in Rome were then infidels ? Or what 
law find they written in any Christian monarchy, how 
and what sort subjects shall take and arrest the per- 
son of their princes, commit and detain them in cap- 
tivity, proceed against them by process and judgment, 
as we are well assured no such order is to be found 
in the whole civil law ? And if they have no warrant 
by Scripture or law, and yet can find out for their 
purpose some examples, as we hear by seditious bal- 
lads they put in print, they would pretend ; we must 
justly account those examples to be unlawful, and 
acts of rebellion: and so, if the stories be well 
weighed, the success will prove them. You shall say 
that this may suffice to such as do pretend to be car- 
ried in their actions by authority either of religion 
or of justice. And as to others that for particular 
respect look only to their own surety, it were well 
done, before they proceeded any further, if they did 
well consider how to stay where they be, and to devise 
how to make surety of their doings already past, than 
to increase their peril by more dangerous doings to 
follow. We detest and abhor the murder committed 
upon our cousin their King, and mislike as much as 
any of them the marriage of the Queen our sister with 
Bothwell. But herein we dissent from them, that we 
think it not lawful nor tolerable for them, being by 
God's ordinance subjects, to call her, who also by 
God's ordinance is their superior and prince, to an- 
swer to their accusations by way of force ; for we do 

words gladium gestantibus (wielding the sword) are not found 
in that verse. 

14 



210 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

not think it constant in nature the head should be 
subject to the foot. 

" If the j shall determine anything to the depriva- 
tion of the Queen, their sovereign lady, of her royal 
estate, we are well assured of our own determination, 
and we have some just and probable cause to think 
the like of other princes of Christendom, that we will 
make ourselves a plain party against them, to the re- 
venging of their sovereign, and for example to all pos- 
terity." 

July 29th, the infant James, then thirteen months 
old, was crowned at Stirling, and John Knox 
preached the sermon of the grand occasion. The Re- 
former seldom enjoyed a prouder triumph, than 
standing in the hall of Mary's stronghold, and pro- 
claiming his Protestant views. The ceremonies were 
followed by bonfires, and all the popular demonstra- 
tions of gladness, on highland and in lowland, the 
King could have claimed, had he been sufficiently 
mature to comprehend the pageantry about him. 
That coronation was one of a series of suggestive 
events. 

At Stirling Castle, Mary Stuart was crowned in 
the arms of her nurse ; there a son was born and 
baptized ; and while the captive mother was lament- 
ing " the evil times," in prison, the wondering boy 
was the centre of enthusiasm. In the same renowned 
pile his rights were the theme of rejoicing, and her 
solitude was the subject of heartless approval. 

Murray had heard in France of Mary's errors and 
calamities, and cherishing a tenderness and attach- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 211 

ment toward his sister, set out, upon receiving intel- 
ligence of the coronation, for Scotland. Before he 
reached England, his hostility to the Queen's impris- 
onment was modified. A messenger, whom he had dis- 
patched to Scotland, met him with the declaration 
of the nobles, and the disclosures of the silver casket. 
When he entered the presence of Elizabeth, he was 
less ardent in Mary's cause than when in France. 
But the indignant Queen reiterated her denunciations 
of the lords, and her purpose to restore Mary Stuart 
to the throne. This increased Murray's alienation, 
and also the danger of the royal prisoner. The Ham- 
iltons had become traitors, and aspiring to the sov- 
ereignty, were negotiating for the trial and execution 
of Mary. The advent of Murray at such a time, was 
an exciting incident. The different factions sent rep- 
resentatives across the frontier to enlist his sympa- 
thy. He respectfully heard their appeals, but gave no 
pledges for the future. Then he crossed the boun- 
dary of the kingdoms, an escort of three hundred men 
attending him to Edinburgh. All eyes were turned 
to him, as the regent of distracted Scotland. 

He refused to decide, amid the conflicting views of 
the people, until he had seen and conversed with 
Mary. The nobles did not oppose the visit, because 
they had no power to prevent it; and on the 15th of 
August, Murray, in company with Morton, Athol and 
Lindsay, repaired to Lochleven Castle. It was his 
purpose to secure her appointment of himself to the 
regency, and enter upon the government with the fair- 
est prospect of success. 

" On seeing him enter her prison, Mary thought 
that her brother had come to be her friend and pro- 



212 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

tector. She burst into a flood of tears, and passion- 
ately complained of the unjust treatment she had 
experienced. Murray listened to her in silence, and 
neither commiserated nor consoled her. The suppli- 
ant Mary then said, turning towards Athol and Mor- 
ton : i My lords, you have had experience of my 
severity, and of the end of it ; I pray you also let me 
find that you have learned by me to make an end of 
yours, or, at least, that you can make it final.' But 
they were as taciturn and gloomy as Murray. 
Alarmed at a visit that seemed to confirm the sinister 
reports which had been spread concerning her, Mary 
took her brother aside before supper, anxiously ques- 
tioned him as to the intentions of the lords, and in 
vain endeavored to fathom his own projects ; but for 
two hours Murray continued silent and impenetrable. 
When the bitter meal had passed away, Mary again 
desired to converse with her brother, c and everybody 
being retired, they conferred together until one of 
the clock after midnight. ' In this second interview, 
Murray threw off his premeditated reserve, and spoke 
to the Queen with terrible frankness and inexorable 
severity. He told her what he thought of herself and 
her misgovernment, pitilessly reminded her of her 
improprieties of conduct, and laid before her, one by 
one, all the actions, which, he said, had violated her 
conscience, sullied her honor, and compromised her 
safety. The unhappy Queen was plunged into de- 
spair by this terrible accusation, and she lost all 
courage. ' Sometimes/ says Throckmorton, in his 
narrative of this painful scene, ' she wept bitterly ; 
sometimes she acknowledged her unadvisedness and 
misgovernment ; some things she did confess plainly ; 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 213 

some things she did excuse ; some things she did ex- 
tenuate.' After having crushed her with the weight 
of these dreadful recollections, Murray left his sister 
in an agony of fear; she thought that her fate was 
sealed, and that she must expect nothing but from 
God's mercy. In this state of mind she passed the re- 
mainder of the night. 

" The next morning she sent for her brother, and 
Murray once more entered her room. Perceiving the 
impression he had made, he assumed a milder mood, 
changed his tone, threw in seme words of consolation, 
and assured her that he desired to save her life, and, 
if possible, to preserve her honor. ' But,' he added, 
c it is not in my power, only ; the lords and others 
have interest in the matter. Notwithstanding, mad- 
am, I will declare to you which be the occasions 
that may put you in jeopardy. For your peril, these 
be they: your own practices to disturb the quiet of 
your realm and the reign of your son ; to enterprise 
to escape from where you are, to put yourself at lib- 
erty ; to animate any of your subjects to troubles or 
disobedience ; the Queen of England or the French 
King to molest this realm, either with their war, or 
with war intestine, by your procurement or other- 
wise ; and your own persisting in this inordinate af- 
fection with the Earl Bothwell.' 

" At these words, Mary, who had remained under 
the dreadful impressions of the previous night, dis- 
cerned a gleam of hope. She threw herself into her 
brother's arms, and expressed her satisfaction at his 
assurance that he would protect her life, and the 
hopes he allowed her to entertain that her honor 
would be saved. In order to arrive more surely at 



214 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

this desired result, she conjured him not to refuse 
the regency, t for by this means,' she said, i my son 
shall be preserved, my realm well governed, and I in 
safety.' Murray hesitated, and alleged reasons, the 
sincerity of which we cannot suspect, against under- 
taking so arduous a task. Always hurried away by 
irresistible impulses, Mary only entreated him the 
more urgently to sacrifice his own repugnance to the 
welfare of his sister. She suggested that he should 
make himself master of all the forts in the kingdom, 
requested him to take her jewels and other valuables 
into his custody, and offered to give to his regency the 
support of her letters and the authority of her name. 
Murray at length assented, appearing to accept with 
resignation what he doubtless most ardently coveted. 
Before leaving his sister, he enjoined the Lords Lind- 
say, Ruthven, and Lochleven, ' to treat the Queen 
with gentleness, with liberty, and with all other good 
usage.' He then bade her farewell, l and then began 
another fit of weeping, which being appeased, she em- 
braced him very lovingly, kissed him, and sent her 
blessing unto the prince, her son, by him.' 

" On this, as on many other occasions, Mary Stuart 
yielded to one of those rapid, momentary impressions 
which so frequently guided her conduct, and set at 
nought the dictates of prudence. At Lochleven, she 
displayed the same character as at the Kirk of Field, 
Almond Bridge, Carberry Hill, and shortly after- 
wards at Carlisle, always yielding to invincible pas- 
sions or deceptive opinions. After having been ter- 
rified into signing her deed of abdication, she had 
been surprised into giving her consent to it. This 
consent, which she ere long repented, had been ob- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 215 

tained from her by the cold and astute Murray, 
whilst her troubled heart Was passing from intense 
alarm to buoyant hope. 

" Assured of her important approbation, Murray 
proceeded to Stirling to visit the infant monarch, in 
whose name he was to govern, and returned to Edin- 
burgh on the 19th of August. Three days after, he 
was declared regent in the council chamber at the 
Tolbooth. Laying his hand upon the Gospels, like a 
true secretary and ardent supporter of the liberties of 
the realm, he took the following oath : e I, James, 
Earl of Murray, Lord Abernethy, promise faithfully, 
in the presence of the Eternal, my God, that I, during 
the whole course of my life, will serve the same Eter- 
nal, my God, to the uttermost of my power, accord- 
ing as he requires in his most holy word, revealed 
and contained in the New and Old Testaments ; and, 
according to the same word, will maintain the true 
religion of Jesus Christ, the preaching of his holy 
word, and due and right administration of his sacra- 
ments, now received and practiced within this realm ; 
and also will abolish and withstand all false religion 
contrary to the same; and will rule the people com- 
mitted to my charge and regiment during the minor- 
ity and less-age of the King, my sovereign, according 
to the will and command of God, revealed in his 
aforesaid word, and according to the loveable laws 
and constitutions received in this realm, noways re- 
pugnant to the said word of the Eternal, my God; 
and will procure to my uttermost, to the kirk of God 
and all Christian people, true and perfect peace, in 
all time coming. The rights and rents, with all just 
privileges of the crown of Scotland, I will preserve 



216 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

and keep inviolate ; neither will I transfer nor alien- 
ate the same. I will forbid and repress, in all estates 
and degrees, reif, oppression, and all kind of wrong. 
In all judgments I will command and procure that 
justice and equity be kept to all creatures without 
exception, as he be merciful to me and you, that is 
the Lord and Father of all mercies; and out of this 
realm of Scotland, and empire thereof, I will be care- 
ful to root that shall be convicted by the true kirk of 
God of the aforesaid crimes. And these things above 
written, I faithfully affirm by this my solemn oath.' 
The seventy-third psalm was then sung, and Murray 
was proclaimed regent at the Market Cross, amid the 
acclamations of the people." 

The wheels of revolution had reached a plane of 
rest. The extreme and conservative parties submit- 
ted without opposition to this administration. Mur- 
ray took the helm of the tempest-tossed ship of State, 
with a steady hand, and the approval of his subjects. 
Foreign princes acquiesced, excepting Elizabeth, 
whose anger was kindled intensely with repeated fail- 
ures to influence the captors of Mary; but she was 
powerless to avert the consummation attained, and 
also to reverse the march of empire. Lethington as- 
sured Throckmorton, the English ambassador, that 
the lords were ready for war, and rebuked the im- 
perious tone of Elizabeth. Murray added : " Though 
I were not here at the doings past, yet surely I must 
allow of them ; and seeing the Queen and they have 
laid upon me the charge of the regency, (a burden 
which I would gladly have eschewed,) I do mean to 
wear my life in defence of their action, and will 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 217 

either reduce all men to obedience in the King's 
name, or it shall cost me my life." 

Murray soon obtained command of the fortresses 
of the realm, and was virtually monarch. 

Bothwell had fled from the Castle of Dunbar to the 
Highlands, where he held estates. An armed de- 
tachment, whose chieftain was the Laird of Grange, 
went in hot pursuit of the fugitive. The freebooter 
then equipped a small fleet, and sought security amid 
the Shetland and Orkney isles, whose frowning cliffs 
dot the dark and tempestuous seas of the North. The 
Laird of Grange followed in his wake, seized two of 
his vessels, and was near Bothwell's ship, when he 
struck a shoal, and the daring outlaw made his es- 
cape ; striking out into the open ocean, he was driven 
by a wild tempest to the coast of Norway. His career 
was commenced as a pirate ; and falling in with a 
Danish man-of-war, he was boarded and taken to 
Denmark. The king, Frederick II., refused to give 
up the notorious Bothwell, either to Murray or to the 
Queen of England, but confined him in the prison of 
Malmoe Castle. After the torture of constant fear 
of being delivered up to his enemies, his restless 
spirit, chafing in restraint, like a caged lion lashing 
the bars of his iron lair, he died a despairing lunatic. 
His associates and minions were many of them ar- 
rested, tried and executed. Powrie, Dalgleish, Hay 
of Tallo, and Hepburn were of the number. 

The most distinguished conspirators, however, on 
account of their position and influence, received hon- 
ors, instead of the executioner's axe. And it has 
always been thus; human justice seldom reaches a 



218 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

brow which reflects the smile of mammon, or wears 
the laurel of renown; foreshadowing the necessity 
and desirableness of a final tribunal, where the evi- 
dence and sentence will be unquestioned and unal- 
terable. 

December, 1567, the Parliament assembled with 
unusual completeness in number, and an imposing 
array of titles. Four bishops, fourteen abbots, twelve 
earls, sixteen lords and eldest sons of lords, and 
twenty-seven commissioners of burghs were present. 
This Parliament enacted religious uniformity by 
ratifying the Confession of Faith in 1560, and sanc- 
tioning the entire abolition of Catholicism; it re- 
sumed from the laymen a third of that ecclesiastical 
property which they had seized, and applied it to the 
support of ministers and schools belonging to the He- 
formed church ; it recognized the legal elevation of 
the young King to the throne of Scotland, sanctioned 
the appointment of the regent, and keenly debated the 
course to be pursued with regard to the Queen — some 
wishing to bring her at once to trial, while others 
desired merely to retain her in captivity. The more 
moderate party gained the victory; but, in order to 
justify the confederate lords for having taken arms, 
imprisoned, and dethroned their sovereign, the Par- 
liament passed an act, by the terms of which Mary 
Stuart was seriously criminated. It contains the fol- 
lowing clause. " That the cause, and all things de- 
pending thereon, were in the Queen's own default, in 
so far as by divers her privy letters, written wholly 
with her own hand, and sent by her to James, some- 
time Earl of Bothwell, chief executor of the said hor- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 219 

rible murder, as well before the committing thereof, 
as thereafter; and by her ungodly and dishonorable 
proceeding to a pretended marriage with him, sud- 
denly and immediately thereafter, it is most certain 
that she was privy to it and part of the aforenamed 
murder of the King her lawful husband, committed 
by the said James, sometime Earl of Bothwell, his 
complices and partakers." 

This harsh expression of opinion, tantamount to 
a condemnation, rendered Mary Stuart's captivity 
more stringent, although by Murray's orders she was 
treated with respect and consideration. She was 
more closely watched, lest she should write to request 
the assistance of any foreign power, or should devise 
a plan for her escape with her friends in Scotland. 
She was able to write only while her keepers were at 
their meals or asleep, for the daughters of the castel- 
lan slept with her. The vigilance of Margaret Ers- 
kine, who watched her captive as a tigress watches the 
prey for her young, and the fidelity of keepers, were 
in vain. George Douglas, son of Margaret, was smitten 
with Mary's surpassing beauty, and his sympathies 
were awakened bv her calamities. The magic which 
fell upon all hearts from the azure eye, and wondrous 
fascination of her graceful person, made the Douglas 
a creature of her will. He resolved to obtain her 
liberty, and her hand. Disguising the prisoner in 
the apparel of a laundress, who frequented the castle, 
he led her unsuspected to the margin of the lake. 
The boat glided away from the shore, and Mary's 
heart throbbed with the anticipation of freedom. 
Friends were on the opposite side of the calm waters, 
awaiting the bark. One of the oarsmen suddenly sus- 



220 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

peering the disguise, approached the Queen and pleas- 
antly began to lift the veil. The impulsive and 
startled Mary, extending her white hand to prevent 
the view of her face, revealed, in the delicate and 
snowy signal, the dreaded majesty of the dethroned 
sovereign. She assumed the bolder tone of authority, 
and commanded the boatmen to proceed. But they 
feared the Laird of Lochleven more than the anger 
of a royal captive, and returned without delay to the 
castle. Mary entered her tower in bitter disappoint- 
ment and grief. This was on the 25th of March, 
1568. She wrote to Catherine de Medici, " I have 
with great difficulty dispatched the bearer of this to 
inform you of my misery, and entreat you to have 
pity upon me." May 1st, she addressed Elizabeth in 
similar but more pathetic and supplicating terms, 
and renewed her appeals to the court of France. 

George Douglas, the lover, was not idle. He had 
continued in the neighborhood of Lochleven, and 
mused day and night upon plans for the escape of the 
Queen. He resolved upon another experiment, May 
2d, which was Sunday. Communicating with Mary, 
Lord Seton, and the Hamiltons, through a page, six- 
teen years of age, called the " Little Douglas," he had 
well and successfully arranged the plot. Seaton and 
others were to receive the prisoner at the castle gates, 
at the hour of meals, the doors of the fortress were all 
shut, and the keys laid beside the castellan.* When 
the appointed occasion arrived, the page placed the 
plate before the Laird, and, dropping his napkin over 
the keys, bore them unobserved away. Pie hastened 
to Mary, who, attired in a servant's dress, followed 
* Governor of the castle. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 221 

him through the gate, which was locked behind them, 
to prevent pursuit. They then stepped into a boat, 
and removing the fastening, rowed arrow-like across 
Lochleven. As the bark touched the beach, George 
Douglas and Lord Seton, who had been secreted in an 
adjacent village, met the smiling, hopeful Queen. 
Vaulting lightly to the saddle of her horse, she dashed 
off towards Widdry Castle, in West Lothian, the seat 
of Seton. Resting a few hours, she journeyed for- 
ward to the strong fortress of Hamilton, and was met 
by Lord Claud Hamilton, with a company of fifty 
horsemen. Upon her arrival, she was received with 
the salutations of the Archbishop of St. Andrews. 
Mary Stuart now prepared to assert her right to the 
throne of Bruce, with arms. She sent Beaton, brother 
of the Archbishop of Glasgow, to France, to crave as- 
sistance in the coming struggle, and dispatched a mes- 
senger to Dunbar, anticipating the surrender of the 
castle to her command. 

The tidingcs of her deliverance flew like the morn- 
ing light, and the friends of former days, who had 
continued loyal, with the forgiving and the disaf- 
fected toward Murray, thronged around her to offer 
their love and lives to the beautiful Queen of Scot- 
land. About forty bishops, earls and lords, and a 
hundred barons, signed a league to place again the 
sceptre in her hand. In the presence of her council, 
she revoked her abdication, declared Murray a trai- 
tor, and found herself, in a brief period, at the head 
of a force of six thousand men. 

The ambassador of Charles IX., of France, sought 
her camp, and recognized her as the rightful sover- 
eign of the realm ; and Elizabeth offered aid to re-es- 



222 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

tablish her authority, if she would have nothing to do 
with foreign assistance. Mary's situation was ex- 
tremely perilous, because if she triumphed on the 
field, the Hamiltons would urge with resistless power 
the marriage of a member of their family ; if she lost 
the battle she would be at the mercy of Murray. With 
prudent policy, she forwarded to the regent proposals 
of reconciliation between the two parties. He was 
at Glasgow, holding a court of justice, guarded only 
by his suite, when he heard of his sister's safe arrival 
at Hamilton Castle, eight miles from his judicial 
hall. Kever did the heroism of his character, the 
Puritan texture, appear more sublimely. Instead of 
flying for recruits as advised to do, he remained, 
without betraying the shadow of a fear upon his bold 
heart, and won both the greater admiration, and the 
more determined adherence of his followers. Re- 
questing time to consider the overtures of the Queen, 
he addressed himself to the raising of an army, which 
should decide in sanguinary conflict, if necessary, 
to whom the crown of Scotland belonged. His rapid, 
yet calm and well arranged plan of operations, in- 
spired his partisans with courage, and drew to his 
standard the Presbyterian soldiery. Edinburgh gave 
him four hundred hackbutters ; Glasgow offered her 
strength ; and Dunbar Castle repelled Mary's de- 
mand, and continued true to the regent. The Earl of 
Mar hurried to the camp the trained men and heavy 
ordnance of Stirling; from the Merse country, the 
chivalrous and brave Alexander Hume brought six 
hundred lances ; under the active, earnest Morton, 
the impetuous Glencairn, and the venerable Laird of 
Grange, recruits streamed in from valley and hill- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 223 

side, till four thousand strong and fearless men stood 
around the reliable Murray, waiting his command. 
With something of Napoleon's tactics, he directed an 
immediate attack on the ranks of the Queen, before 
additional volunteers increased her prospect of vic- 
tory. Though Mary preferred greater security of 
position, the Hamiltons were confident of conquest, 
and anxious for battle. They yielded so far to her 
influence, as to march towards Dumbarton Castle, an 
almost impregnable fortress, with the determination 
to fight if pursued — an unfortunate course, exposing 
their rear to the foe, and hazarding the chances of an 
engagement, while in retreat. The Queen's army had 
to pass from the left bank of the Clyde to the south 
of Glasgow, where Murray had entrenched a large 
body of troops, to guard the road. The veteran Laird 
of Grange, according to his own advice, occupied the 
heights of Langside, with the main forces, and placed 
in ambush a company of hackbutters, beside a lane 
through which the hostile regiments must march to 
reach the hill. This path was through a defile, inter- 
sected with hedges, and divided into plantations, with 
their dwellings and foliage. The Queen's cavalry, 
though vastly outnumbering that of Murray, could 
not fight with advantage there, and the infantry, con- 
fined and embarrassed, would be quickly subdued. 
The Hamiltons, two thousand strong, entered the de- 
file with the step of warriors who saw through the 
smoke of conflict, victory folding her wings on their 
standard, when, like a storm of hail from a viewless 
cloud, a wasting fire was poured from the ambush 
upon that astonished vanguard. Confusion followed, 
and the living men pressed up the declivity, ex- 



224: MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

hausted and scathed by the discharge of the unseen 
foe. Upon the summit they were met with Murray's 
welcome of pikemen, who rushed to the combat with 
desperate valor. The Laird of Grange swept from 
one wavering line to another, to reinforce and reani- 
mate ; Morton, with mathematical coolness and pre- 
cision, made havoc ; Hume dashed with a tempestuous 
and daring onset upon the ranks of the enemy, while 
Murray made a brilliant and decisive charge with his 
resistless columns, on the reeling host of Mary, and 
the field was won. The triumph gained in three- 
quarters of an hour, was so complete, that only three 
hundred of the Queen's army were left dead on the si- 
lent eminence ; ten pieces of brass cannon were taken, 
and a large number of prisoners, among whom were 
distinguished nobles. Mary Stuart had watched from 
a distant elevation the arena of battle, where her 
throne was the contested prize. Her ambitious heart 
throbbed with the excitement of hope, while her bat- 
tallions moved through the leaden hail to the sum- 
mit of Langside ; that heart was tossed with conflict- 
ing emotions, as the carnage deepened, and sank with 
despair when Murray swept down upon the wavering 
ranks. Descending with haste to the plain, she 
mounted her horse, and attended by a few servants, 
rode in a wild gallop towards Dumfries, neither halt- 
ing or slackening speed till sixty miles lay between 
her and the scene of hopeless defeat. At Dundren- 
nan Abbey, she gazed a moment on the waters, and 
chose a bark for England, instead of a home in 
France. Relying upon the repeated assurances of 
Elizabeth's kindness, she resolved to cast herself upon 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 225 

the mercy of the Queen, to whom she wrote as fol- 
lows : 

ft My very dear sister, without giving you a narra- 
tive of all my misfortunes, since they must be known 
to you already, I will tell you that those of my sub- 
pects whom I have most benefitted, and who were 
under the greatest obligations to me, after having 
revolted against me, kept me in prison, and treated 
me with the utmost indignity, have at last entirely 
driven me from my kingdom, and reduced me to such 
a condition that, after God, I have no hope in any 
one but vou." 

%J 

Lord Herries, who was with Mary, sent a request 
to the deputy governor of Carlisle for permission to 
enter the city ; but before an answer could arrive, the 
fugitive Queen rashly crossed the Solway Frith, in 
a fisherman's boat, and May 16th, landed at Worth- 
ington, on the Cumberland coast. She immediately 
addressed Elizabeth : 

THE QUEEN OF SCOTS TO QUEEN ELIZABETH. 

" Madam my good sister, I believe you are not 
ignorant how long certain of my subjects, whom from 
the least of my kingdom I have raised to be the first, 
have taken upon themselves to involve me in trouble, 
and to do what it appears they had in view from the 
first. You know how they purposed to seize me and 
the late King my husband, from which attempt it 
pleased God to protect us, and to permit us to expel 
them from the country, where, at your request, I 

•15 



226 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

again afterward received them ; though, on their re- 
turn they committed another crime, that of holding 
me a prisoner, and killing in my presence a servant 
of mine, I being at the time in a state of pregnancy. 
It again pleased God that I should save myself from 
their hands ; and, as above said, I not only pardoned 
them, but even received them into favor. They, how- 
ever, not yet satisfied with so many acts of kindness, 
have, on the contrary, in spite of their promises, de- 
vised, favored, subscribed to, and aided in a crime, 
for the purpose of charging it falsely upon me, as I 
hope fully to make you understand. They have, 
under this pretence, arrayed themselves against me, 
accusing me of being ill advised, and pretending a 
desire of seeing me delivered from bad counsels, in 
order to point out to me the things that required ref- 
ormation. I, feeling myself innocent, and desirous to 
avoid the shedding of blood, placed myself in their 
hands, wishing to reform what was amiss. They im- 
mediately seized and imprisoned me. When I up- 
braided them with a breach of their promise, and re- 
quested to be informed why I was thus treated, they 
all absented themselves. I demanded to be heard in 
council, which was refused me. In short, they have 
kept me without any servant, except two women — a 
cook and a surgeon ; and they have threatened to kill 
me, if I did not sign an abdication of my crown, 
which the fear of immediate death caused me to do, 
as I have since proved before the whole of the nobil- 
ity, of which I hope to afford you evidence. 

" After this, they again laid hold of me in Parlia- 
ment, without saying why, and without hearing me ; 
forbidding, at the same time, every advocate to plead 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 227 

for me, and compelling the rest to acquiesce in their 
unjust usurpation of my rights; they have robbed me 
of everything I had in the world, never permitting 
me either to write or to speak, in order that I might 
not contradict their false inventions. 

" At last, it pleased God to deliver me, when they 
thought of putting me to death, that they might- 
make more sure of their power, though I repeatedly 
offered to answer anything they had to say to me, and 
to join them in the punishment of those who should 
be guilty of any crime. In short, it pleased God to 
deliver me, to the great content of all my subjects, 
except Murray, Morton, the Humes, Glencairn, Mar, 
and Semple, to whom, after that my whole nobility 
was come from all parts, I sent to say that, notwith- 
standing their ingratitude and unjust cruelty em- 
ployed against me, I was willing to invite them to re- 
turn to their duty, and to offer them security of their 
lives and estates and to hold a Parliament for the 
purpose of reforming everything. I sent twice. 
They seized and imprisoned my messengers, and 
made proclamation, declaring traitors all those who 
should assist me, and guilty of that odious crime. I 
demanded that they should name one of them, and I 
would give him up, and begged them, at the same 
time, to deliver to me such as should be named to 
them. They seized upon my officer and my proclama- 
tion. I sent to demand a safe conduct to my Lord 
Boyd, in order to treat of accommodation, not wish- 
ing, as far as I might be concerned, for any effusion 
of blood. They refused, saying that those who had 
not been true to their regent and to my son, whom 
they denominate king, should leave me, and put them- 



228 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

selves at their disposal — a thing at which the whole 
nobility were greatly offended. . 

" Seeing, therefore, that they were only a few indi- 
viduals, and that my nobility were more attached to 
me than ever, I was in hope that, in course of time, 
and under your favor, they would be gradually re- 
duced; and, seeing that they said they would either 
retake all or die, I proceeded towards Dumbarton, 
passing at the distance of two miles from them, my 
nobility accompanying me, marching in order of bat- 
tle between them and me ; which they seeing, sallied 
forth, and came to cut off my way and take me. My 
people seeing this, and moved by that extreme malice 
of my enemies, with a view to check their progress, 
encountered them without order, so that, though they 
were twice their number, their sudden advance 
caused them so great a disadvantage, that God per- 
mitted them to be discomfited, and several killed and 
taken ; some of them were cruelly killed when taken 
on their retreat. The pursuit was immediately inter- 
rupted, in order to take me on my way to Dumbarton ; 
they stationed people in every direction, either to kill 
or take me. But God, through his infinite goodness, 
has preserved me, and I escaped to my Lord Herries', 
who, as well as other gentlemen, have come with me 
into your country, being assured that, hearing the 
cruelty of my enemies, and how they have treated 
me, you will, conformably to your kind disposition, 
and the confidence I have in you, not only receive for 
the safety of my life, but also aid and assist me in my 
just quarrel, and I shall solicit other princes to do the 
same. I entreat you to send to fetch me as soon as 
you possibly can, for I am in a pitiable condition, not 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 229 

only for a Queen, but for a gentlewoman : for I have 
nothing in the world but what I had on my person 
when I made my escape, traveling across the country 
the first day, and not having since ever ventured to 
proceed, except in the night, as I hope to declare be- 
fore you, if it pleases you to have pity, as I trust you 
will, upon my extreme misfortune; of which I will 
forbear complaining, in order not to importune you, 
and pray to God that he may give to you a happy 
state of health and long life, and to me patience, and 
that consolation which I expect to receive from you, 
to whom I present my humble commendations. F.vjm 
Wrokinton, the 17th of May. 

" Your most faithful and affectionate good sister, 
and cousin, and escaped prisoner, Mary R." 

Elizabeth read this affecting plea of her rival with 
deep and contending emotions. The inquiries which 
enlisted her thought and tried her sympathies, were, 
whether she should send Mary back to Scotland with 
a conquering army, give her a home in England, or 
permit her to return to France. Danger environed 
each of these possible plans of meeting the extremity 
of a fallen Queen. Again on the throne, she might 
overthrow the Protestant faith, and renew her pre- 
tensions to the crown of England. If she remained 
on British soil, there would be the opportunity for 
intrigues and conspiracies with the Catholics. Should 
Mary retire to France, the Guises and court of that 
papal kingdom might give her fearful strength to 
awaken the tumult of sanguinary conflicts, political 
and religious. 

May 28th, another letter was addressed to the 



230 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

doubting and suspicious Elizabeth, imploring mercy. 

THE QUEEN OF SCOTS TO QUEEN ELIZABETH. 

" Madam, my good sister, I have reeeived two let- 
ters from you, the first of which, relating to myself, 
I hope to answer, and to learn from my Lord Scrop, 
and your vice-chamberlain, your natural inclination 
toward me, which I have always promised myself 
with certainty, and wish that my affection for you 
were as apparent as it is sincere, and then you would 
think your kindness better bestowed, than I could 
persuade you by my humble 

" Madam, I am sorry that the haste in which I 
wrote my last letter, caused me to omit, as I perceive 
by yours, the principal thing which induced me to 
write to you, and which is also the principal cause of 
my coming into this kingdom, which is that, having 
for a long time been a prisoner, and, as I have al- 
ready informed you, being unjustly treated, as well 
by their acts as by their false reports, I wished above 
all to lay my complaint before you, as well on account 
of our near relationship, equality of rank, and pro- 
fessed friendship, as to clear myself before you from 
those calumnious charges which they have dared to 
prefer against my honor, and also for the assurance 
I had that, above all things, you would consider that, 
not being punished for the crimes committed afore- 
time against me, which, at your request, I forgave 
these ungrateful subjects, and restored them to their 
former state, to the detriment and prejudice of mine, 
whence it is evident, that out of respect to you, I did 
what has caused my ruin, or at least very near it. . 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 231 

With a view to repair the mischief, and to amend the 
error that has arisen from it, I have dispatched my 
Lord Herries, my faithful and well beloved subject, 
to inform you fully of these things, and others con- 
cerning which I learned from Messieurs Scrop and 
Knowles [Lord Scrope and Sir Francis Knollys] 
that you are in doubt, requesting you to believe him 
as myself, and forthwith to let me have your answer 
in writing, whether it would be agreeable to you if I 
were to come without delay and without ceremony to 
you, and tell you more particularly the truth about 
all that has happened to me, in contradiction to all 
their lies, which I am sure you would have pleasure 
to hear, as you have pleased to write me in your 
letters, that you could take my justification in your 
own hands till you have replaced me in the state to 
which Heaven had pleased to call me, and that all 
princes are bound to support and assist one another. 
" I send, on this occasion, my cousin, my Lord 
Flemin, a faithful subject, in order that, being as- 
sured by you, he may proceed to France to thank the 
king, monsieur, my good brother, for his .... and 
good offices, which I reserve for another time, if I 
have occasion for them, contenting myself with your 
aid and support, which I shall feel myself obliged to 
acknowledge as long as I live, in every way in my 
power. If, on the contrary, that which I reckon upon 
does not come from you, and from some others, for 
considerations which I am not aware of, at least I 
trust that, freely as I came to throw myself into your 
arms, as my best friend, you will permit me, in your 
refusal, to seek succor from other princes and friends, 
my allies, as may seem most convenient to me, with- 



232 MARY QUEEN OP SCOTS. 

out any prejudice to the eminent friendship between 
us two; and whatever you decide will please you, I 
shall be satisfied with, though one would have been 
more agreeable to me than the other; for, God be 
thanked, I have got good friends and neighbors in 
my so just quarrel; and there is nothing to prevent 
me from applying to them but this detention, which, 
to speak freely to you as you do to me, I think rather 
harsh and strange, considering that I came so frankly 
into your country without any condition, or any dis- 
trust of your friendship, promised in your frequent 
letters; and though I have lived in a manner a pris- 
oner in your castle for a fortnight, since the arrival 
of your counsellors, I have not obtained permission 
to go to you to plead my cause, as my confidence in 
you was such that I asked for nothing more than to 
go to you to make you acquainted with my grievances. 

{i Now I beseech you to consider how important my 
long detention is to me, and for the cause of my ruin, 
which, thank God, is not gaining ground. Signify 
then to me the consent of your natural affection for 
your good sister, and cousin, and firm friend. Re- 
member that I have kept my promise. I send you 
my in a ring, and I have brought 

n the signal, in order to tie the knot more firmly; 
if you are not disposed to wrong me . . . whom 
you may believe as you would myself. After this 
long address, I shall not trouble you further than to 
present my affection and recommendations to your 
good grace, and to pray God to grant you, madam, 
health, and a long and happy life. 

" Your very faithful and 

" Karlil, the 28th of May, 15G8." 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 233 

Whatever were the transient impulses of compas- 
sion excited by this plaintive plea, Elizabeth adhered 
to her policy, and secretly decided to keep Mary 
Stuart in her own hands. As preliminary to the ulti- 
mate purpose, and to prepare the way, she gave the 
captive a royal journey from Workington to Carlisle, 
and lavished upon her the honors due to a Queen. 
After the pageantry of Mary's entry into the city 
was over, she was surrounded with spies, and guarded 
by soldiery. Elizabeth dispatched letters of condo- 
lence, but refused to see her until she had proved 
herself innocent of Darnley's murder. The following 
passage is from the report of Lord Scrope and Sir 
Erancis Knollys, warden and vice-chamberlain of the 
border, to Elizabeth, after the interview of May 28th : 

" We found her in her answers to have an eloquent 
tongue and a discreet head ; and it seemeth by her 
doings, that she hath stout courage and liberal heart 
adjoined thereunto ; and, after our delivery of your 
highnesses letters, she fell into some passion, with the 
water in her eyes, and therewith, she drew us with 
her into her bed-chamber, where she complained unto 
us, for that your highness did not meet her expecta- 
tions, for the admitting her into your presence forth- 
with ; that upon good declaration of her innocence, 
your highness would either without delay give her 
aid yourself, to the subduing her enemies, or else, 
being now come of good will, and not of necessity 
into your hands (for a good and greatest part of her 
subjects, said she, remain fast to her still) your high- 
ness would, at least, forthwith give her passage 
through your country into France, to seek aid at other 



234 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

princes' hands; not doubting, but both the French 
king, and the king of Spain, would give her relief to 
her satisfaction. And here she fell into discourses, 
that the cause of the war and disobedient treasons of 
these her subjects, was thereby to keep that which 
she had too liberally given them by violence ; since 
through her revocation whereof, when of full age, 
they could not enjoy the same by law; and withal 
(she affirmed) that both Lethington and the Lord 
Morton were assisting to the murder of her husband." 

Lord Herries was now sent to London to negotiate 
a loan upon the Queen's credit as dowager of France, 
with which to sustain the cause of her partizans in 
Scotland. Retaining Dumbarton Castle, they were 
strong and unyielding. Murray was unsparing and 
persevering in his efforts to subdue them, but failed 
to exterminate the reanimated foe. Lord Fleming 
was chosen to represent Mary's cause in France, with 
most pathetic messages to Charles IX., Catherine and 
the Cardinal of Lorraine. " She besought the French 
court to deliver her from her unfortunate position by 
sending two thousand infantry to the relief of Dum- 
barton ; by furnishing the money and accoutrements 
necessary for the equipment and maintenance of five 
hundred horse-soldiers; by sending artillery and am- 
munition to enable her to recover the other fortresses 
of Scotland ; and by bestowing the order of St. Mi- 
chael on two or three of those noblemen who had 
especially distinguished themselves by their valor and 
devotion to her cause, in order to encourage the 
others, and confirm them in their fidelity." Seizing 
upon Mary's offer to establish her innocence, Eliz- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 235 

abeth determined upon a formal trial of the prisoner. 
Murray urged it, with extravagant promises to fur- 
nish overwhelming evidence of his sister's guilt. 

After some delay, Lords Herries and Fleming, who 
had reached London, were admitted into the presence 
of the politic and ascendant " Virgin Queen," at 
whose tribunal of justice never was arraigned a crim- 
inal of so manifold gifts and honors, and around 
whom gathered an interest extensive as regal sway. 
The envoys advocated zealously the claims of Mary. 
Elizabeth replied : 

" But her subjects have discriminated throughout 
the world a scandalous and disgraceful report, of 
which she is well aware ; her honor and mine require 
that the matter should be looked into — not that I 
should constitute myself her judge, but that I should 
inquire of her accusers what cause they have to speak 
thus of her, and by what right they have seized her 
person, her crown, her fortress, and all her property, 
in doing which they cannot be excusable." " But, mad- 
am," said Lord Herries, " if it should appear to be 
otherwise which God forbid ? " " Even then, I 
would not fail to arrange with her subjects, in the 
best and most careful manner possible, so as to se- 
cure her honor and provide for their safety." When, 
however, Herries requested that his mistress might be 
allowed to withdraw to the continent, or at all events, 
to return to Scotland in the little boat which had 
brought her over to .England, Elizabeth absolutely re- 
fused. u As for the passage of my good sister into 
France, I will not prove myself so imprudent as to 
permit it, and be thus held in low esteem among other 
princes* When she was there before, the King, her 



236 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

husband, assumed for her the title and arms belong- 
ing to my crown, though I was then alive ; and I will 
not place myself again in such embarrassing circum- 
stances As for her return into Scot- 
laud in the humble conveyance which you have men- 
tioned, since she has come into my country, it would 
be neither to her honor nor to mine for her to go 
back ; and besides, it would not be to her advantage to 
do so." 

Accordingly, Elizabeth dispatched an ambassador 
to Murray, then leading an army of six thousand men 
against the heroic friends of Mary Stuart, and de- 
manded a truce, until she had decided the right to 
the crown of Scotland, and the criminality of the con- 
tending parties. She rebuked the regent for the dar- 
ing deeds which gained his elevation, and ceemed anx- 
ious to inspire Mary with hope; either because she 
felt the promptings of pity, or to make surer work 
of securing her victim ; that Elizabeth was not alto- 
gether demoniac in these complicated interests at 
stake, is clear. In this strain she addressed Murray: 

" All these things cannot but sound very strange 
in the ears of us, being a prince sovereign, having do- 
minions and subjects committed to our power, as she 
had. Eor remedy whereof she requireth our aid, as 
her next cousin and neighbor; and for justification 
of her whole cause, is content to commit the hearing 
and ordering of the same simply to us. We have 
thought good and necessary, not only to impart thus 
much unto you, wherewith she chargeth you, and 
others joined with you, but also to require and advise 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 237 

you utterly to forbear from all manner of hostility 
and persecution against all such as have lately taken 
part with the said Queen, and to suspend all manner 
of actions and proceedings against them, both by law 
and arms, and to impart unto us plainly and suffi- 
ciently all that which shall be meet to inform us of 
the truth, for your defence, in such weighty crimes 
and causes as the said Queen hath already or shall 
hereafter object against you, contrary to the duty of 
natural born subjects ; so that we, being duly in- 
formed on all parts, may, by the assistance of God's 
grace, direct our actions and orders principally to his 
glory, and next to the conservation of our own honor 
in the sight of all other princes, and finally to the 
maintenance and increase of peace and concord be- 
twixt both these two realms." 

Middlemore, the plenipotentiary to Mary, deliv- 
ered his message in the presence of Scrope and 
Knollys ; the burden of which was the reiterated de- 
termination of Elizabeth not to receive her rival, 
until acquitted of participation in the recent regicide. 
When allusion was made to the judgment of the 
Queen of England, and a trial, Mary Stuart's passion 
was aroused, and she answered indignantly : " I 
have no other judge but God, neither can any take 
upon themselves to judge me. Of my own free will, 
indeed, and according to the good trust I reposed in 
the Queen, my sister, I offered to make her the judge 
of my cause. But how can that be, when she will 
not suffer me to come to her." 

Mary demanded an interview with Elizabeth, or 
permission to depart with or without assistance, and 



238 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

again imploringly wrote to the unrelenting arbiter of 

her fate. 



THE QUEEN OF SCOTS TO QUEEN ELIZABETH. 

" Madam, my good sister — I thank you for the dis- 
position which you have to listen to the justification 
of my honor, which ought to be a matter of import- 
ance to all princes, and especially to you, as I have 
the honor to be so near of kin to you. But it seems to 
me, that those who persuade you that my reception 
would turn to your dishonor, manifest the contrary. 
But, alas, madam, when did you ever hear a prince 
censured for listening in person to the grievances of 
those who complain that they have been falsely ac- 
cused. Dismiss, madam, from your mind, the idea 
that I came hither to save my life ; neither the world 
nor all Scotland has cast me out ; but to recover my 
honor, and to obtain support to enable me to chastise 
my false accusers, not to answer them as their equal, 
for I know that they ought not to enter into engage- 
ments against their sovereign, but to accuse them be- 
fore you, that T have chosen you from among all other 
princes, as my nearest kinswoman and perfect friend ; 
doing as if I supposed it to be an honor to be called 
the queen-restorer, who helped to receive this kindness 
from you, giving you the honor and the glory all my 
life, making you also thoroughly acquainted with my 
innocence, and how falsely I have been led. 

" I see, to my great regret, that I am mistaken. 
You say that you are counseled by persons of high 
rank to be guarded in this affair. God forbid that I 
should be cause of dishonor to you, when it was my 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 239 

intention to seek the contrary! Wherefore, if you 
please, as my affairs require such great haste, let me 
see if the other princes will act in the same manner, 
and then you cannot be blamed. Permit me to see 
those "who will support me without any apprehension 
of that sort, and take what security you will of me 
when I shall afterward place myself again in your 
hands. Though I think you would not desire that, 
when replaced on my throne, my honors restored, and 
all foreigners out of the country, I shall come to 
plead my cause before you, and to justify myself for 
the sake of my honor and of the friendship which I 
bare you, and not for the satisfaction I should have 
in answering false subjects; or even sending for me 
without giving credit, as it seems you do, to those who 
are not worthy of it. Grant me your favor and as- 
sistance first, and then you shall see whether I am 
worthy. If you find that I am not, and that my 
demands are unjust, or to your prejudice, or contrary 
to your honor, it will then be time to get rid of me, 
and to let me seek my fortune without troubling you. 
For, being innocent, as thank God I know I am, are 
you not doing me wrong to keep me here, on getting 
out of one person as it were in another, encouraging 
my false enemies to persevere in their lying ways, and 
disheartening my friends by delaying the assistance 
promised them from other quarters, if I wished to 
employ it I I have all the good men on my side, 
and my detention may bring ruin upon them, or cause 
them to change their sentiments, and then there will 
be a new conquest to make. For your sake, I par- 
doned those who are at this moment seeking my ruin ; 
of which I can accuse you before God, and . . . 



2iO MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

further delay will undo me Excuse 

me, it is to me a matter of the utmost importance. I 
must speak to you without dissimulation. You have 
admitted into your presence a bastard brother of 
mine, who fled from me, and you refuse me the favor, 
and I feel assured, that the juster my cause the longer 
it will be delayed ; for it is the remedy of a bad cause 
to stop the mouths of its adversaries ; besides, I know 
that John Wood was commissioned to procure this 
detention, as their most certain remedy in an unjust 
quarrel and usurpation of authority. 

" Wherefore, I beseech you, assist me, binding me 
to you in everything, or be neuter. And permit me 
to try what I can do elsewhere, otherwise, by delay- 
ing matters, you will injure me more than my very 
enemies. If you are afraid of blame, at least, for the 
confidence that I have placed in you, do nothing 
either for or against me, that you do and see that I 
would do for my honor, being at liberty. For here I 
neither can nor will answer their false accusations, 
though out of friendship and for my pleasure, I 
would cheerfully justify myself to you, but not in 
the form of a trial with my subjects, if they bark at 
me with my hands tied. Madam, they and I are not 
companions in anything; and if I were to be kept 
here still longer, I would rather die than make myself 
such. 

" Now, speaking as your good sister, let me be- 
seech you, for the sake of your honor, without fur- 
ther delay, to send back my Lord Herries, with the 
assurance that you will assist me, as he has requested 
you in my name: for I have no answer either from 
you or from him, nor your license as above. I be- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 241 

seech you, also, since I am come to place myself in 
your hands, in which I have been detained so long 
without having any certainty, to order my Lord 
Scrope to allow my subjects to have access, if only 
one, two, or three, to come and return, and to bring 
me intelligence about my subjects, otherwise it would 
be condemning me and my defenders. God grant 
that you may listen to what I have intended to say to 
you briefly; I should not have troubled you at such 
length, though I do not blame you in the least for 
these underhand practices against me ; but I hope, 
notwithstanding all their fair offices and falsely 
colored speeches, that you will find me a more profita- 
ble friend than they can be to you. I shall say noth- 
ing particular but by word of mouth. Wherefore, I 
shall conclude with my humble commendations to 
your good grace, praying God to grant you, madam 
my good sister, health, and a long and very happy 
life. 

" From Carlil, the xiii of June, 1568. 
" Your good sister and cousin, 

" Maey K." 

The kings of Europe were increasingly interested 
spectators of the approaching crisis in the history of 
a sovereign, whose destiny would be an example to 
future monarchs. The Queen, whose extraordinary 
power of beauty and genius won triumphs, had been 
watched from thrones more remote than Elizabeth's, 
who calmly gazed from her fastness, like a mountain 
eagle upon an invader of radiant plumage, till the 
feared and envied foe was bleeding within his talons. 
The crowned heads of half a continent saw the des~ 
16 



242 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

perate game, but occupied with insurrections at home, 
or commotions abroad, offered no interposition. 
Montmorin, the envoy of Charles IX., of France, 
asked Elizabeth to deal kindly with Mary, and de- 
scribes his visit to Carlisle: 

u The room which she occupies is gloomy, being 
lighted only by one casement, latticed with iron bars. 
You go to it through three other rooms, which are 
guarded and occupied by hackbutters. In the last of 
these, which forms the ante-chamber to the Queen's 
apartment, resides Lord Scrope, the governor of the 
border districts. The Queen has only three of her 
women with her. Her servants and domestics sleep 
out of the castle. The doors are not opened until ten 
o'clock in the morning. The Queen is allowed to go 
as far as the church in the town, but she is always 
accompanied by a hundred hackbutters. She re- 
quested Scrope to send her a priest to say mass; 
but he answered that there were no priests in Eng- 
land." 

The cloud of despair settled down between Mary 
and the throne of England, and she appealed to the 
Cardinal of Lorraine to save her sinking fortunes 
from complete ruin. Her words are subduing. " I 
entreat you to have pity on the honor of your 
poor niece, and to procure for me the support I need. 
Meanwhile, I beseech you to send me some money; 
for I have none wherewith to buy either food or cloth- 
ing. The Queen of England has sent me a little 
linen, and supplies me with one dish. The rest I 
have borrowed, but I can get no more. You will 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 243 

share in this disgrace. God is subjecting me to a 
hard trial ; nevertheless, rest assured that I shall die 
a Catholic. God will quickly remove me from these 
miseries, for I have suffered insults, calumnies, im- 
prisonment, hunger, cold, heat, flight, without know- 
ing whither to go, for ninety-two miles across the 
country without stopping or dismounting, and then 
being obliged to sleep on the hard ground, and drink 
sour milk, and eat oatmeal without bread ; and at 
last I am come into this country, where, as a reward, 
I am nothing better than a prisoner ; and meanwhile 
the houses of my servants are pulled down, and I can- 
not assist them, and my servants themselves are 
hanged, and I cannot recompense them." 

ISTo aid was extended, and the only alternative for 
Mary was to meet Murray in trial before the judicial 
bar of Elizabeth. She was more narrowly guarded, 
and the privy council of England " decided unani- 
mously that Queen Mary should be removed from the 
frontier to some place in the interior of the kingdom. 
They maintained, moreover, that in virtue of the an- 
cient fuedal superiority of the crown of England over 
that of Scotland — a superiority which had frequently 
been asserted by the one, and as frequently denied 
by the other — Queen Mary might be brought to trial ; 
that the wish which she had expressed to be restored 
to her throne before her innocence had been proved, or 
else permitted to withdraw to France before she had 
been tried, was equally opposed to the honor and 
safety of Elizabeth ; but that, after her cause and 
justification had been thoroughly examined, she 
should be taken back to her kingdom and restored to 
her authority." 



244 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

July 6th, 1568, she wrote once more from Carlisle 
to Elizabeth, repeating her condemnation of " the 
rebels," complaining of additional restraint, and 
closes with this eloquent passage : 

" Good sister, be of another mind. Even the heart 
and all shall be yours, and at your commandment. I 
thought to have satisfied you wholly, if I might have 
seen you. Alas ! do not as the serpent that stoppeth 
his hearing, for I am no enchanter, but your sister 
and natural cousin. If Caesar had not disdained to 
hear or read the complaint of an advertiser, he had 
not so died. Why should princes' ears be stopped, 
seeing they are painted so long; meaning that they 
should hear all, and be well advised before they an- 
swer. I am not of the nature of the basilisk, and less 
of the chameleon's, to turn you to my likeness ; and 
though I should be so dangerous and curst as men say, 
you are sufficiently armed with constancy and with 
justice, which I require of God, who give you grace 
to use it well, with long and happy life." 

Under a military escort, Mary Stuart was removed 
to the Castle of Bolton, in Yorkshire, a fortress in the 
possession of Lord Scrope. Promising an impartial 
investigation of her affairs, Elizabeth required her to 
renounce entirely the claim to the succession in Eng- 
land during the life of herself or issue; and also to 
break the league with France, and adopt in religious 
worship the forms of common prayer. Mary at 
length yielded so far to the pressure of events, that 
she consented to the appointment of commissioners to 
arbitrate and settle honorably the pending and mo- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 245 

mentous questions cf royalty. The Queen of Eng- 
land expressed her bias and prospective action, in a 
communication addressed to Murray the 20th of Sep- 
tember : 

" Whereas we hear say, that certain reports are 
made in sundry parts of Scotland, that whatsoever 
should fall out now upon the hearing of the Queen of 
Scots' cause, in any proof to convince or acquit the 
said Queen concerning the horrible murder of her 
late husband our cousin, we have determined to re- 
store her to her kingdom and government, we do so 
much mislike hereof, as we cannot endure the same 
to receive any credit ; and therefore we have thought 
good to assure you, that the same is untruly devised 
by the authors to our dishonor. For as we have been 
always certified from our said sister, both by her let- 
ters and messages, that she is by no means guilty or 
participant of that murder, (which we wish to be 
true,) so surely if she should be found justly to be 
guilty thereof, as hath been reported of her, (whereof 
we would be very sorry,) then, indeed, it should be- 
hoove us to consider otherwise of her cause than to 
satisfy her desire in restitution of her to the govern- 
ment of that kingdom. And so we would have you 
and all others think, that should be disposed to con- 
ceive honorably of us and our actions." 

War ceased in Scotland, and the regent made prep- 
arations to confront his sister and former sovereign 
Mary chose for the occasion, to represent her cause 
Lesley, the Bishop of Ross, Lords Herri?s, Boyd and 
Livingston, Sir John Gordon, of Lochinvar, and Sir 



24:6 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

James Cockburn, of Stirling. Murray appeared with 
Earl of Morton, the Protestant Bishop of Orkney, 
Lord Lindsay, and Robert Pitcairn, with Buchanan 
and others as assistants. Elizabeth selected Duke of 
Norfolk, the Earl of Sussex and Sir Ralph Sadler. 

Lethington, who was involved in the King's mur- 
der, and who had alwavs retained an attachment to 
Mary, endeavored to avert the public inquiry, to 
which she had given her assent. He felt that dis- 
honor to her would be a result, and forwarded the 
letters in the silver casket to the captive, desiring to 
know how he might serve her in the approaching 
emergency. She requested Lethington to soften the 
severity of Murray's accusations, and secure the in- 
fluence of the illustrious Duke of Norfolk. The 
noble Howard wielded a controlling influence in the 
privy council, and over the kingdom. The third time 
a widower, he secretly aspired to the hand of Mary 
Stuart. 

Norfolk immediately united his power to Lething- 
ton's efforts to stay proceedings. In an interview 
with that disloyal and pliant secretary, he began his 
mediation with a plan of reconciliation between the 
regent and his exiled sister. He thus reprovingly 
addressed Lethington : 

" Is England judge over the princes of Scotland ? 
How could we find it in our hearts to dishonor the 
mother of our future king % or how could we answer 
afterwards for what we had done, seeing that, by 
bringing his mother's honesty in question, we jeop- 
ardize his right to the crown of England. It had 
been rather the duty of you, his subjects, to cover her 
imperfections, if she had any, leaving her punish- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 247 

ment unto God, who is the only judge over princes." 
Lethington endorsed these opinions, and arranged 
a meeting of Murray with Norfolk, which occurred at 
night, in the solitary gallery of the dwelling of the 
duke. The effect of the duke's reasoning, on the evils 
which would inevitably attend a public defamation 
of the Queen, while nothing but great imprudence on 
the part of her accusers could prevent her ultimate 
possession of the crown of England, was deep and in- 
fluential upon the discriminating mind of Murray. 
The regent affirmed, however, that the contents of the 
casket could not be suppressed — the Queen did not 
deny their origin, and many had already seen them. 
Norfolk persuaded him not to use them as evidence, 
and wisely added: 

"You are grievously deceived, if you imagine the 
Queen of England will ever pronounce sentence in 
this cause. Do you not see that no answers have 
been returned to the questions which, upon this point, 
were addressed by you to us, and forwarded to the 
Queen ? Nay, you can easily put the matter to a 
more certain proof. Request an assurance, under the 
Queen's hand, that when you accuse your sovereign 
and bring forward your proofs, she will pronounce 
sentence. If you get it, act as you please — if it is 
not given, rest assured that my information is true, 
and take occasion thereupon to stay from further pro- 
ceedings." Murray decided to do no more than vin- 
dicate himself, without attacking Mary. 

During these private negotiations and plots — the 
unfolding series of events in the life of a beautiful 
princess, whose far-reaching interest swept over 
many brave and cowardly hearts, both in the splendop 



248 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

and under the shadow of thrones — the prisoner wrote 
a letter to Elizabeth, embracing a summary of her 
hopes, desires and fears: 

THE QUEEN OF SCOTS TO THE QUEEN OF SPAIN. 

Si Madam, my good sister — I cannot describe to you 
the pleasure which I have derived, at so unfortunate 
a time for me, from your friendly and consoling let- 
ters, which seem as if sent by God to solace me amid 
so many troubles and adversities with which I am 
surrounded. I clearly perceive how much I am 
bound to praise God for our having been brought up, 
fortunately for me, together in our youth,* which is 
the cause of our indissoluble friendship, proofs of 
which you give on your part. Alas ! what return 
can I make, unless by loving and honoring you, and, 
if I should ever have the means of serving you, as I 
have always wished to do, and shall as long as I live. 

" Do not blame me, my good sister, if I have not 
written to you — for I have been for eleven months 
imprisoned, and so strictly guarded, as not to have 
either the means to write, or any one to whom I could 
intrust my letters. After that, I was ten days in 
Scotland, and in a castle only five miles distant from 
my enemies. Since then, I lost the battle. f I was 
obliged to take refuge here, as I informed you by 
Montmorin. By the way, I kiss your hands for the 

* Elizabeth, third wife of Philin II.. of Spain, was the eldest 
daughter of the French King, Henry II., at whose court the 
Queen of Scots was brought up. 

f The battle of Langsi le, which induced Mary to seek 
refuge in England. See above, pp. 222-225. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 249 

regret which he told me you had expressed for my 
misfortunes. But to return to my subject. Don Guz- 
man can vouch for the impossibility, in my situation, 
either of sending a messenger, or even a letter, in 
safety; for I am in the hands of people, who watch 
me so narrowly, that the most trifling circumstance 
would furnish them with an excuse for serving me a 
worse turn than detaining me against my will ; and 
but for this, I should long since have been in France. 
But she [Queen Elizabeth] has positively refused to 
allow me to go thither, and insist on directing my 
affairs, whether I will or not. I cannot give you here 
all the details, as they would be too long ; but I have 
ordered the brother of my ambassador in France, to 
acquaint the ambassador of the king, your lord, in 
London, with every particular, that he may write to 
you in cipher, otherwise it would be dangerous. 

" I will tell you one thing, by the way ; that if the 
kings, your lord and your brother, were at peace, my 
misfortune might be of service to Christendom. For 
my coming to this country has caused me to make 
acquaintance, by which I have learned so much of 
the state of things here, that if I had ever so little 
hope of succeeding elsewhere, I would make ours the 
reigning religion, or perish in the attempt.* The 
whole of this part is entirely devoted to the Catholic 
faith, and with the right that I have, for this reason, 

* This letter, written at the time when Mary was making 
such strong professions of implicit submission to Elizabeth, 
clearly shows what England might have expected, could Mary 
have got rid of its detested Protestant sovereign, although 
her " good sister," and made good her own claim to her 
throne. 



250 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

in my favor, I could easily teach this Queen what it 
is to intermeddle and assist subjects against princes. 
She is extremely jealous, lest this, and this only, 
should restore me to my country. But she tries, by 
all means, to make me appear guilty of what I have 
so unjustly been accused of, as you will perceive from 
a statement of all the intrigues which have been di- 
rected against me ever since I was born, by those 
traitors to God and to me. It is not yet finished. 
Nevertheless, I must tell you I have been offered 
many fine things to change my religion ; which I will 
never do. But if I am compelled to yield, in some 
points, which I have stated to your ambassador, you 
may judge that it will be because I am a prisoner. 
Now I assure vou, and beseech vou to assure the 
king, that I shall die in the Roman Catholic religion, 
whatever they may say to the contrary. I cannot 
exercise it here, because they will not permit me, and, 
merely for having spoken of it, they have threatened 
to shut me up more closely, and to treat me with less 
consideration. 

" You have adverted to a subject in jest, which I 
mean to take in good earnest ; it is respecting the 
ladies, your daughters. Madam, I have also a son. 
I hope that if the king, and the king your brother, to 
whom I beg you to write in my behalf, will but send 
an embassy to this Queen, declaring to her that they 
do me the honor to rank me as their sister and ally, 
and that they are resolved to take me under their 
protection, requiring her at the same time, if she 
values their friendship, to send me back to my king- 
dom, and to assist me to punish my rebels ; other- 
wise, they will themselves endeavor to do so, being as- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 251 

sured that she will never take part with subjects 
against their sovereign ; she will not dare to refuse 
them, for she is herself in some fear of insurrections. 
For she is not greatly beloved by any one of the relig- 
ions, while, God be praised, I believe I have gained 
the hearts of a great many good people of the country, 
since my coming, so that they are ready to hazard all 
they possess, for me and my cause. If this were done, 
and some other necessary favors, which I have men- 
tioned to your ambassador, being in my own country, 
and in friendship with this Queen, whom her people 
will not permit to see me, for fear I should lead her 
into a better track, (for they are of opinion that I 
should govern her if I studied to please her,) I might 
then hope to bring up my son in devotion to your in- 
terest ; and if it please God to be merciful to me, and, 
with your assistance, to gain for him that which be- 
longs to us, I am sure that, if you grant him one of 
your daughters, whichsoever you please, he will be 
but too happy. They have almost made an offer to 
naturalize him ; and for the Queen to adopt him as 
her son. But I have no wish to give him up to them, 
and to resign my rights, the consequence of which 
w r ould be to render him of their wretched religion. 
If I had my choice, I should much rather send him 
to you, and risk every danger to re-establish the an- 
cient arid good faith through this whole island. I 
beg you will keep this secret, for it might cost me my 
life ; yet whatever you hear, be assured that I shall 
never change my opinion, however I may be com- 
pelled to accommodate myself to circumstances. 

" I will not trouble you at present with a longer 
letter, but merely beseech you to write in my behalf, 



252 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

Should I and this Queen come to terms, I will write 
and inform you. But it is necessary that your am- 
bassador should be commanded to correspond with 
me in cipher, and to send some one to visit me at 
times, as my attendants dare not go to them. 

k ' I humbly recommend myself to your favor, pray- 
ing God to give you health and a long and happy 
life. I have much more to write to you, but I dare 
not; I am in a fever about this. I beg you to send 
me some one ; in your especial name, and one in whom 
I can place confidence, so that I may make known to 
him all my intentions. From Bolton, this 24th Sep- 
tember, 1568. 

" Your very humble and obedient sister, 

" Mary." 

Mary Stuart contemplated the arraignment of the 
regent, but evidently did not anticipate for herself 
the position of a criminal before the appointed judges 
of her invaded prerogative. If she had maintained 
a proud refusal to answer to any charges preferred 
by her rebellious subjects, Elizabeth would not have 
been able to bring her to a tribunal ; and to continue 
her captivity, would have been a most difficult and 
dangerous undertaking. The submission of Mary to 
the arbitration of her rival, was not the least of the 
errors of her impulsive, ardent nature, whose con- 
quering loveliness of person, and ancient lineage of 
royalty, were made the delusive basis of undying 
hope. A rainbow arched every storm, to her vision, 
and she awaited, with the excitement of consuming 
anxiety and expectation of deliverance, the trial. 



CHAPTER VII. 

The conference was opened with pomp and cere- 
mony, befitting a court representing two Queens, a 
regent, and the leading nobles of both England and 
Scotland. Mary Stuart's commissioners boldly as- 
serted her regal rights and honor — made a full and 
lucid statement of the successive shocks of revolution 
which had shaken the land of Bruce to its centre, 
and hurled their indignant condemnation upon the 
rebellious partizans of Murray. The regent offered 
his vindication with equal boldness. He described 
the impolitic measures and marriages of the Queen — 
the voluntary resignation of her crown — and her con- 
sent to his acceptance of the regency from the enthu- 
siastic people. He passed over the charge of murder, 
which was to the masses the unpardonable sin of her 
reign, and which kindled the anger of Elizabeth more 
than any other error, excepting the claim to succes- 
sion. The commissioners replied that the marriage 
with Bothwell was an unwilling submission to the 
wishes of the nobles. To this, Murray made no an- 
swer. Elizabeth was without excuse for delaying a 
personal interview with Mary. Murray improved the 
moment, to test the success of a more fearful line of 
procedure. He inquired of the English commission- 
ers whether, if he proved the captive's guilt, she 
would be condemned, and he continued in his official 
station. He also sent a private messenger to Bolton, 

253 



254 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

to ascertain if Mary would avoid the threatened dis- 
grace by confirming her abdication, and remaining 
in England with a royal income. He then exhibited 
to the lords, representing Elizabeth, the letters of the 
silver casket. Lesley advised Mary to yield to the 
regent's propositions, to which she consented, October 
13th. 

While matters were on the eve of an adjustment, 
which would secure Murray's authority and the 
fallen Queen's honor, Elizabeth, who was apprized of 
the secret parley, interposed, and removed the court 
to Westminster, under her argus-eyed inspection. 

The conference opened November 25th. ' 4 After 
Mary's commissioners had read a protest in conform- 
ity to the recent instructions they had received from 
their sovereign, the lord chancellor, who acted as 
president of the conference, informed Murray that 
the defence he had made at York was considered in- 
conclusive : and, with a view to encourage the regent 
to speak more openly, he added : ' Her majesty prin- 
cipally wisheth that, upon the hearing of this great 
cause, the honor and estate of the Queen of Scots may 
be preserved, and found sincerely sound, whole, and 
firm ; but if she shall be justly proved and found 
guilty of the murder of her husband, which were 
much to be lamented, she shall either be delivered 
into your hands, upon good and sufficient sureties and 
assurances for the safety of her life and good usage of 
her ; or else she shall continue to be kept in England, 
in such sort as neither the prince her son, nor you, the 
Earl of Murray, shall be in any danger by her lib- 
erty. And for the time to come, her majesty will 
maintain the authority of the said prince to be king, 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 255 

and the government of the realm by yon, the Earl of 
Murray, according to the laws of Scotland.' 

" Somewhat re-assured by this declaration, Murray 
spoke. He said that it had long been repugnant to 
his feelings to make public acts of a nature calculated 
to sully the honor of the mother of his sovereign in 
the eyes of strangers ; but that he was now compelled 
by necessity to defend himself, and that all blame 
must rest upon those who had forced him to drag into 
light the proofs which he had hitherto concealed. 
However, as the verbal declarations which had been 
given in Elizabeth's name did not satisfy him, as he 
knew that princess would readily disavow them, Mur- 
ray required an assurance, under the English Queen's 
hand, that she would pronounce a judgment, before 
he gave in his accusation. To this Cecil replied, that 
he had ample assurance already; and it ill became 
him to suspect or doubt the words of their royal mis- 
tress. ' Where,' he added, ' is your accusation V e It 
is here,' answered John Wood, the regent's secretary, 
plucking it from his bosom, ' and here it must re- 
main till we see the Queen's handwrit.' As he spoke, 
the Bishop of Orkney — who was dissatisfied with the 
regent's vacillating policy, and who agreed with Mor- 
ton, Lindsay, the Abbot of Dunfermline, and Bu- 
chanan, in wishing to put matters to extremities — 
stepped up to Wood, snatched the paper from his 
hands, and running to the table, placed it before the 
English commissioners. Wood remained, for an in- 
stant, motionless, from real or feigned astonishment ; 
but quickly recovering himself, he sprang after the 
bishop. He was, however, too late to stop him, and 
was obliged to resume his seat, amid the ill-suppressed 



256 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

laughter of many present. This scene of violence and 
buffoonery formed the fitting introduction to the de- 
famation of a Queen by her own subjects, before the 
subjects of another sovereign. 

" In his accusation, Murray stated that as Bothwell 
was the author of Darnley's murder, so the Queen, 
his wife, had persuaded him to commit it ; that she 
was not only in the foreknowledge of the same, but a 
maintainer of the assassins, as she had shown by 
thwarting the course of justice and by marrying the 
chief executor of that foul crime. To give addi- 
tional force to this solemn denunciation of Mary's 
culpability, the father of the murdered king added 
his demand for vengeance. The Earl of Lennox pre- 
sented himself before the English commissioners, and 
in the most pathetic language, accused Queen Mary 
of having conspired the death of his son, declared that 
until that moment he had not expected to obtain jus- 
tice, except at the hand of God, but that he now laid 
his case in full confidence before their lordships, 
whom her majesty, the Queen of England, whose nat- 
ural-born subject his son was, had authorized to hear 
this cause. 

" Mary Stuart labored under a most terrible accu- 
sation. Her deputies were thrown into great conster- 
nation, and deliberated for two days upon the course 
they ought to pursue. Before breaking up the con- 
ference, in conformity to the latest instructions they 
had received from their sovereign, they repelled the 
imputations which had been cast upon her, in con- 
tempt of all divine laws and human obligations, and 
bitterly complained that so unlawful and unexpected 
a proceeding had been allowed in England. ' My 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 257 

lords/ they wrote to the English commissioners, ' we 
are heartily sorry to hear that our countrymen in- 
tend to color their most unjust, ungrateful, and 
shameful doings against their natural sovereign, liege 
lady and mistress, who hath been so beneficial to 
them. Her grace hath made them, from mean men, 
earls and lords ; and now, without any evil deserving 
on her part, in either deed or word, to any of them, 
she is thus recompensed with calumnious and false 
reports, and slandered to her reproach in this great 
matter, whereof they that now pretend herewith to 
excuse their treason were the first inventors — having 
written with their own hands that devilish bond, the 
conspiracy for the slaughter of that innocent young 
gentleman, Henry Stuart, late spouse of our sover- 
eign, and presented her in marriage to their wicked 
confederate, James, Earl Both well, as was made man- 
ifest before ten thousand people in Edinburgh/ 

" After protesting against what ' these rebels and 
calumniators had done in Scotland/ Mary's com- 
missioners affirmed that their usurpation was not as- 
sented to by an eighth part of the kingdom, and 
pointed out the consequences that might ensue to 
other princes, from granting impunity from this ex- 
ample of successful revolt and disloyal accusation. 
' If this in them be tolerated/ they wrote, ' what 
prince lives upon the face of the earth whose am- 
bitious subjects may not invent some slander, to de- 
prive them of their supreme authority during their 
lifetime ? Your wisdoms well understand how far 
their doings exceed the bounds permitted to subjects 
in the holy and sacred Scriptures, and violate the 
loyal duty which they owe to their native princes. 

17 



258 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

They attributed the insurrection of Murray's party 
in Scotland, not to any desire to punish the murderers 
of the King, but to their ambition to govern the 
kingdom; and in conclusion, they repeated that their 
mistress, whose ancestors had been independent mon- 
archs, and who was herself an independent princess, 
could not be judged by any living authority, as the 
Queen of England herself had admitted. 

" Their next step was to demand an immediate au- 
dience of Elizabeth. When admitted to her presence, 
they complained in strong terms of the manner in 
which the proceedings had been conducted. They 
reminded her of her promise, that in the absence of 
their royal mistress, nothing should be done which 
might affect her honor and authority ; complained 
that, in violation of this promise, her subjects had 
been encouraged to load her with the most atrocious 
imputations ; reiterated their demand that she should, 
in common justice, be allowed to appear in person 
and plead her own cause ; and, meanwhile, besought 
that her accusers might be arrested. This bold de- 
mand perplexed Elizabeth, but she extricated herself 
from the dilemna with her usual astuteness. After 
declaring that she had never believed the Queen of 
Scots guilty of the murder of her husband, she 
went on to say, that as the regent and his colleagues 
had brought this accusation against her in their own 
defence, it would be unjust not to give them an oppor- 
tunity to prove their allegations. She had, therefore, 
resolved to send for them, and to demand their 
proofs; after which she would willingly hear their 
mistress in her own justification. The partiality of 
this proceeding, which transformed those who were 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 259 

accused of rebellion into the accusers of a murder, 
filled Mary's commissioners with indignation. They 
remonstrated against a further hearing being granted 
to Murray, and ended by solemnly protesting, that 
nothing that might be done hereafter had their con- 
sent, or should in any way prejudice the rights of 
their sovereign. 

" Their indignation, however, was only assumed as 
a cloak for their alarm ; and whilst they were most 
bitterly inveighing against the regent, they sent to 
him to propose a compromise. In order to prevent 
the production of those formidable documents, which 
Elizabeth's perfidious animosity so ardently desired, 
they suggested that she should become reconciled to 
his sister, who would, doubtless, restore him to her 
favor, and give him and his adherents every pledge 
that they might require. But this was only a recon- 
ciliation, whilst Murray and the lords of his party de- 
manded an abdication. Elizabeth, moreover, declared 
that a queen, who labored under so grave a charge, 
ought not to compromise the matter, but to defend 
herself." * 

During these proceedings, Mary wrote a letter of 
.condolence and complaint to the king of Spain, which 
is a beautiful expression of sympathy and suffering. 

THE QUEEN" OF SCOTS TO KING PHILIP. 

" Most high and most puissant prince, my very 
dear and well beloved brother, cousin and ally, in the 
midst of my adversity, I have received, at the same 
moment, two pieces of news, from which it would 
seem that Fortune is redoubling her efforts to put an 

* Mignet. 



260 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

end to me altogether. One of these is that of the 
death of the queen, your consort madam, my good sis- 
ter, whose soul may God receive ! and the other, that 
some one has represented to you that I am wavering 
in my religion, and that, to my misfortune, you 
doubt, sometimes, whether I have any at all. These 
two accounts afflict me to such a degree, that, though 
one leaves some hope of solace and remedy, I see none 
for the other. I know not which of the two grieves 
me most. I have reason to mourn, as I do with you, 
the death of so good and virtuous a princess, whose 
loss, I am sure, will be most painful to you. As for 
myself, personally, it has bereft me of the best sister 
and friend I had in the world — of her in whom I had 
the greatest hope ; and, though this loss is irreparable, 
though we ought to be resigned to it, and to submit 
to the will of God, who has been pleased to take her 
to himself, and to remove her from this life to enjoy 
another much more happy, still, it is impossible for 
me to mention, or even think of her, but my heart 
melts into tears and sighs, while the love I bore her 
is incessantly recalling her to my memory. I have, 
also, particular cause to be afflicted, as I am afraid 
of losing that which she had in part gained for me 
with you; that is to say, so good an opinion, that I 
would be very sure of finding in you that protection 
and favor which I need in my misfortunes, as I am 
certain that, if God had but spared her life until now, 
she would have answered to you for me, and have as- 
sured you that the reports made to you are absolutely 
false, which they really are. It is not long since I 
wrote to her, and I remember that, among other 
things, I intimated my firm resolution of living and 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 261 

dying in the Roman Catholic faith, whatever ill us- 
age I might have to endure here on that account, and 
this, too, before I had the least suspicion that any one 
had endeavored to calumniate me to you, though I 
have had a long experience of the wickedness of the 
rebels and other persons of this country, who tolerate 
them, because they are all of the same sect; but I 
never could have thought that calumny could have so 
many attractions for persons professing the Catholic 
religion, and of that faith I believe them to be who 
prejudiced you against me. 

" I must now tell you that, whoever the person 
may be who has been the instrument of such disser- 
vice, I beseech you not to believe him, as he must be 
misinformed ; and if you will please to honor me by 
appointing individuals worthy of confidence, to make 
inquiries cf those persons who are about me, and who 
are the most capable of answering and speaking on 
any subject whatever, I am sure that they will certify 
the very contrary, for they have never heard me utter 
a single word, or do the least thing that could give 
them so unfavorable an idea of me. 

" If I do not exercise my religion, it must not be 
concluded that I waver between the two. Besides, 
since my arrival in this kingdom, I begged to be, at 
least, allowed to exercise it in the same manner 
ns the ambassador cf a foreign prince is permitted to 
do ; but was told that I was a kinswoman of the 
Queen's, and should never obtain that indulgence. 
An English minister was afterward sent to me ; he 
merely recites some prayers in the vulgar tongue, 
which I had not the power to prevent, because I was, 
as I still am, deprived of my liberty, and closely 



262 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

guarded. But if it be supposed I have done wrong 
by being present at those prayers which I attended, 
because I was not allowed any other exercise of my 
religion, I am ready to make any amends that may be 
considered necessary, that all the Catholic princes in 
the world may be convinced that I am an obedient, 
submissive, and devoted daughter of the holy Catho- 
lic and Roman church, in the faith of which I will 
live and die, without ever entertaining any other in- 
tention than this — an intention from which, with the 
help of God, I will never swerve in any way what- 
ever. 

" But, as a single word on this point ought to suf- 
fice, I will not trouble you further on the subject, ex- 
cept to entreat you to lend a favorable ear to that 
which I have charged the Archbishop of Glasgow, 
my ambassador at the court of France, to say to your 
resident at the said court, that he may communicate 
it to you. 

" These presents having no other object, I con- 
clude, very humbly and affectionately recommending 
myself to your favor, and praying the Creator to 
grant you a long and happy life. 

" From the Castle of Bowton, in England, the last 
day of the month of November, one thousand five 
hundred and sixty-eight. 

" Your very good sister, Mary." 

The Scotch deputies, perceiving in the determina- 
tion of Elizabeth to make Mary answer to the charge 
of complicity in the Darnley murder, and the proof 
which Murray was to offer of her guilt in his own 
defence, augmenting danger to their Queen, dissolved 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 263 

the conference, entered a solemn protest against the 
course of arbitration, and withdrew, under the osten- 
sible design of self-vindication. The regent, in ac- 
cordance with the order of the English commission- 
ers, furnished the contents of the silver casket, with 
manifold evidence of their authority. The court af- 
firmed the testimony to be conclusive, and proceeded, 
in the face of renewed protest and dissolution of the 
conference, to their illegal yet withering conclusions. 
The privy council of Elizabeth approved the entire 
action, and resolved " that, as the crimes wherewith 
the Queen of Scots had been by common fame bur- 
dened, are made more apparent by many vehement 
allegations and presumptions upon things now pro- 
duced, the Queen's majesty cannot, without manifest 
blemish of her own honor, agree to have the said 
Queen come into her presence until the said horrible 
crimes may be, by some just and reasonable answer, 
avoided and removed from her." 

Elizabeth made propositions for permitting Mary 
to answer the fatal documents, which were promptly 
rejected. She also wrote to the prisoner in a sym- 
pathetic strain, but remained true to the policy of an 
imperial sway, whose unquestioned possession was 
more precious than a rival's bleeding heart. 

QUEEN" ELIZABETH TO MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

" Madame, while your cause hath bene here treated 
upon, we thought it not nedeful to write anything 
thereof unto you, supposing, alwaies, that your com- 
missioners wolde thereof advertise as they sawe cause. 
And now, sithen they hawe broken this conference, 



264 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

by refusing to make answer as they say by your 
commandment, and for that purpose they returne to 
you; although we thinke you shall by them perceive 
the whole proceedings; yet we cannot but let youe 
understand by these our lettres, that as we have been 
very sorry of long time for your mishappes and 
great troubles, so find we our sorrowes now dubled in 
beholding such thinges as are produced, to prove your- 
self cause of all the same. And our grief herein is 
also increased, in that we did not think at any time 
to have seen or hard such matters of so grate ap- 
parunce and moment to chardge and condemne youe. 
Nevertheless, both in frindship, nature and justice, 
we are moved to couer these matters, and stay our 
judgment, and not to gather any sence thereof to your 
prejudice, before we may hear of your direct answer 
thereunto, according as your commissioners under- 
stand our meaning to be, which, at their request, is de- 
livered to them in writing. And as we trust they will 
aduise youe for your honor to agree to make answer, 
as we have mentioned them, so surely we cannot but as 
one prince and nere cousin regarding another, moost 
earnestlye as we may in terms of friendship, require 
and chardge you not to forbeare from answering. 
And for our parte as we are heartely sorry, and dis- 
maide to find such mater of your chargde; and al- 
though we doubt not but you are well certified of the 
diligence and care of your ministers having your com- 
mission, yet can we not, besides an allowance gener- 
ally of them, especially note to you your good choice 
of this bearer, the Bishoppe of Ross, who hath not 
only faithfully and wisely, but also so carefully and 
dutifully, for your honor and weale, behaved himself, 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 265 

and that both privately and publickly, as we cannot 
but in this sorte commende him unto youe, as we wish 
you had many such devoted discrete seruuants. For in 
our judgement, we thinke we have not any that in loy- 
alty and faithfulness can overmatche him. And this 
we are the bolder to write, considering we take it the 
best triall of a good seruante to be in aduersitie, out 
of which we wish you to be deliuered by the iustifica- 
tion of your innocency. 

" And so trusting to hear shortly from you, we 
make an ende. Geven at Hampton Court, under our 
Signet the xxth of December, 1568, in the Leauenthe 
year of Reigne. 

" Your good sister and cousin, 

" Elizabeth." 

Mary refused to appear as a criminal, and dis- 
played her great qualities of character. Amid all her 
calamities — changing policy — disappointments and 
tears, she had never despaired. Ambitious and bold 
in prosecuting her plans, she assumed the bearing 
and dignity of a Queen in the hour of greatest peril. 
She spurned the thought of self-defence, and turned 
with unsparing attack upon Murray. She used the 
following language in a message to her commission- 
ers: 

" Forasmuch as the Earl of Murray and his adhe- 
rents, our rebellious subjects, have added unto their 
pretended excuses, produced by them for coloring 
of their horrible crimes and offences, committed 
against us, their sovereign lady and mistress, the 
charge that l as the Earl of Bothwell was the princi- 



266 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

pal executor of the murder committed on the person 
of Harry Stuart, our late husband, so we knew, coun- 
seled, devised, persuaded, and commanded the said 
murder,' — they have falsely, traitorously, and wick- 
edly lied ; maliciously imputing unto us a crime of 
which themselves were authors and inventors, and 
some of them even executors." Repelling the charge 
of having impeded the proceedings of justice against 
Darnley's murderers, and of having given her consent 
beforehand to her marriage with Bothwell, she al- 
luded, with consummate ability and eloquence, to the 
danger to which the lords declared that she had ex- 
posed her son: " That calumny," she pathetically ob- 
served, " should suffice for proof of all the rest. The 
natural love of a mother towards her bairn, confounds 
them ; but in the malice and impiety of their hearts, 
they judge others by their own affection." 

Accordingly, the Scotch commissioners presented 
their accusations of regicide against the regent and 
his friends, sustained and vehemently urged by the 
Bishop of Ross. Upon hearing of the new order of 
royal battle for sovereignty, the impetuous Lindsay 
sent a challenge to Lord Herries. January 11th 
Murray confronted Mary's representatives, and de- 
manded proof of their charges. Their prosecution of 
him and defence of their Queen, were indefinite, and 
too general for any important issue. An abdication 
was again proposed by Elizabeth, as the only final 
settlement of the distressing difference. But Mary's 
imprudence and guilt had gone abroad in published 
documents, and she would not voluntarily resign her 
crown, and in the act confess her criminality. She 
affirmed to the commissioners, — u the last words that 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 267 

I shall utter in my life, shall be the words of a Queen 
of Scotland." 

The conference was closed, and the condition of 
Mary's affairs was worse than when it began. Mur- 
ray returned to guard his throne, with the consent 
and approval of Elizabeth and her court, Mary 
wrote complainingly to the Queen of England : 

THE QUEEN OF SCOTS TO ELIZABETH. 

" Madam my good sister — I know not what occa- 
sion I can have given to any of this company, or at 
least of your kingdom, that they should endeavor to 
persuade you (as it appears to me by your letter,) of 
a thing so distant from my thoughts, whereof my 
conduct has borne witness. Madam, I came to you in 
my trouble for succor and support, on the faith of the 
assurance that I might reckon upon you for every 
assistance in my necessity ; and, for this reason, I 
refrained from applying for any other aid to friends, 
relatives, and ancient allies ; relying solely upon your 
promised favor. I have never attempted, either by 
word or deed, aught to the contrary, and nobody can 
lay to my charge anything against you. Still, to my 
unspeakable regret, I see my actions falsely repre- 
sented and construed ; but I hope that God and time, 
the father of truth, will declare otherwise, and prove 
to you the sincerity of my intentions towards you. 

" In the meantime, I am treated so rigorously, that 
I cannot comprehend whence proceeds the extreme 
indignation which this demonstrates that you have 
conceived against me, In return for the confidence 
which I have placed in you, in preference to all other 



26$ MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

princes, and the desire I have shown to obtain your 
favor. I cannot but deplore my evil fortune, seeing 
you have been pleased not only to refuse me your 
presence, causing me to be declared unworthy of it 
by yoitr nobles; but also suffered me to be torn in 
pieces by my rebels, without even making them an- 
swer to that which I have alleged against them ; not 
allowing me to have copies of their false accusations, 
or affording me any liberty to accuse them. You 
have also permitted them to retire, with a decree, in a 
manner absolving and strengthening them in this 
usurped so-called regency, and have thrown the blame 
upon me, and covertly condemned me without giving 
me a hearing, detained my ministers, caused me to be 
removed by force, without informing me what has 
been resolved upon respecting my affairs ; why I am 
to be transferred to another abode ; how long I am to 
remain there ; how I shall be treated there ; or for 
what reason I am confined, and all support and my 
requests refused. 

" All these things, along with petty annoyances, 
such as not permitting me to receive news from my 
relatives in France, nor from my servants on my pri- 
vate necessities, having in like manner anew inter- 
dicted all communication with Scotland, nay, refused 
me leave to give any commission to one of my ser- 
vants, or to send my letters by them, grieve me so 
sorely, and make me, to tell you the truth, so timid 
and irresolute, that I am at a loss how to act, nor can 
I resolve upon obeying so sudden an order to depart, 
without first receiving some news from my commis- 
sioners : nor that this place is a whit more agreeable 
than any other which you may be pleased to assign ; 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 269 

•when you have made me acquainted with your good 
will toward me, and on what conditions. 

" Wherefore, madam, I entreat you not to think 
that I mean any offence, but a natural care which I 
owe to myself and my people, to wish to know the 
end before disposing of myself so lightly, I mean vol- 
untary ; for I am in your power, and you can, in spite 
of me, command even the lowest of your subjects to 
sacrifice me without my being able to do anything 
but appeal to God and you, for other support I have 
none ; and, thank God, I am so silly as to suppose that 
any of your subjects concern themselves about the 
affairs of a poor, forlorn foreign prince, who, next to 
God, seeks your aid alone, and, if my adversaries tell 
you anything to the contrary, they are false, and de- 
ceive you ; for I honor you as my eldest sister ; and 
notwithstanding all the grievances above mentioned, I 
shall be ever ready to solicit, as of my eldest sister, 
your friendship before that of any other. Would to 
God you would grant it me, and treat me as I should 
wish to deserve in your place ! When this shall come 
to pass, I shall be happy ; if not, God grant me pa- 
tience, and you his grace. And here I will humbly 
recommend myself to yours, praying God to grant 
you, madam, health, and a long and happy life. 
'•' From Bolton, this xxii, of January, (1568-9.) 
" Your very affectionate good sister and cousin, 

' Mary R' 

Mary again requested a copy of the letters in evi- 
dence against her, but Elizabeth denied her, unless 
she would vindicate her impeached honor. This the 
resolute captive would do only in the presence of the 



270 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

English Queen and foreign ambassadors. The Hope- 
less contest continued for weeks. Permission was de- 
sired in behalf of Mary Stuart, to leave England, as 
the regent, her brother, had done. Instead of com- 
plying, Elizabeth removed her, under the care of the 
Earl of Shrewsbury, farther into the interior of 
the kingdom. 

" It was January 26th, 1569, that Mary arrived at 
the Castle of Tutbury,* with impressions of terror 
and disgust, which were somewhat softened by the 
presence of her faithful friends, Lord and Lady Liv- 
ingston, Mary Seaton, and a junior Livingston ; nor, 
to a heart susceptible as hers of personal attachment, 
could it be a matter of indifference, that in her re- . 
duced train of domestics, she saw many faces long 
familiar to remembrance, f — the experienced Hauler, 
her French secretary, and the gallant William Doug- 
lass, her juvenile protector. In the family of her new 
guardians might be discovered the epitome of a court, 
with all its concomitant suspicions and intrigues, 
venal spies, and domestic discords. Naturally liberal 
and courteous, the Earl of Shrewsbury was united to 
a woman whose imperious and crafty temper con- 
stantly embittered his existence. 

" In contemplating her desperate fortunes, she had 
no alternative but to suppress her discontent, to prac- 
tice patience, and assume the language of resignation. 
Instead, therefore, of proclaiming her resentment for 

* Tutbury is a small town on the river Dove, in the eastern 
part of the county of Stafford, and about 130 miles northwest 
of London. 

f Those attendants were thirty in number. See Lodge's 
44 Illustrations of British History," vol. ii. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 271 

the violence which had been offered to her inclina- 
tions, she not only affected to reconcile herself to a 
residence in Tutbury Castle, but by every possible 
concession labored to efface those religious or political 
impressions which might operate against her personal 
interests; and she not only persisted in attending 
public worship according to the Anglican church, but 
condescended to solicit an introduction to every per- 
son who visited Lord Shrewbury's family.' 7 

A writer has recorded an interview enjoyed with 
Mary at this time. " Her grace fell in talk with me 
on sundry matters, from six to seven of the clock, be- 
ginning first to excuse her ill English, declaring her- 
self more willing than apt to learn that language, and 
how she used translations as a means to attain it, and 
that ' Mr. Vice-chamberlain (Knolles) was a good 
schoolmaster/ * I asked her how she liked her change 
of air.' She said, i If it might have pleased her good 
sister, she would not have removed at this time ; but 
added (doubtless to qualify the objection), she was 
better content, because she was come so much nearer 
to the Queen's majesty, whom she desired above all 
things to see.' In reply to this, White had the 
effrontery to remark, that ' though denied the actual, 
she was effectively admitted to the real presence of 
his sovereign, whose affectionate and sisterly care was 
constantly manifested for her preservation. At the 
same time he reminded her of the perils from which 
she had escaped, and with solemn mockery felicitated 
her singular good fortune in having reached this hos- 
pitable realm, and received in it such honorable and 
liberal treatment. ' The insolence of this address was, 
perhaps, in some degree disguised by quaint and 



272 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

commonplace recommendations of patience and 
piety, with which it was abundantly seasoned; and 
Mary listened to the didactic courtier with apparent 
complacency, gently remarking, that ' patience was 
indeed most necessary to her present state, and that 
she prayed God to bestow it on her.' Dismissing sub- 
jects of personal interest, the visitor demanded how 
the Queen passed her time when debarred by bad 
weather from using exercise. She replied, that t she 
spent her time in needlework, and that the variety 
of the colors beguiled the occupation which she con- 
tinued in, till admonished by the pain in her side, 
that she ought to desist.' She then entered into a 
comparison of painting with sculpture; but soon 
withdrew to her apartment, probably to vent the bit- 
terness of her soul in murmurs against her pretended 
benefactors. Abstracted from the positive miseries 
of her present situation, Mary created to herself a 
new source of torment, by yielding to suspicions the 
most chimerical and absurd. That in Sir William 
Cecil she had an enemy she could not doubt ; but in- 
stead of attributing his hostility to the true cause, 
namely, his intimate association with the Regent 
Murray, and his ardent attachment to the religion 
which that statesman professed, she suffered herself 
to be persuaded that the sagacious minister of Eliza- 
beth labored to effectuate her exclusion from the 
throne of England, purposely that he might raise to 
it another pretender, the Earl of Huntingdon.* But, 
however credulous Mary might be, her English adver- 
saries appear to have been equally addicted to con- 

* The earl had married a female descendant of the Duke of 
Clarence, the brother of Edward the Fourth. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 273 

jectural fancies, since Nicholas White professed to be 
perplexed by the motto which he saw embroidered on 
her cloth of estate — dans ma fin est mon commence- 
ment [In my end is my beginning;] and, for the 
sake of Elizabeth, adduced many reasons why ' the 
Queen of Scots should be seen as little as possible ; be- 
sides, that she is a goodly personage, though not com- 
parable to our sovereign ; she hath withal an alluring 
grace, a pretty Scotch speech, and a searching wit, 
clouded with mildness. Fame might move some to 
relieve her, and glory joined to gain, might stir others 
to adventure much for her sake ; then joy is a lively 
impetuous passion, and carrieth many persuasions to 
the heart, which ruleth all the rest." 

Murray was not at ease in his triumph. The Duke 
of Norfolk was exasperated because the regent had 
interposed new obstacles in the way of his marriage 
to Mary Stuart. Catholic earls were in a blaze of 
religious enmity. Assassination threatened him, and 
it was only by stratagem that he escaped. He ap- 
peased the Duke of Norfolk with pleas of necessity in 
appearing as the accuser of his sister, and promises 
of kindest interest for her future well-being. Mary 
immediately summoned her energies and her avail- 
able influence to the work of attempting a deliverance 
from captivity. France was in sympathy with her 
design, Scotland was ready to furnish an armed force, 
and the north of England was roused, while Spain 
was moving for an invasion of Britain. The Duke of 
Chatellerault, and Lord Herries, with Huntley and 
Argyle, presented themselves to the insurgent lords, 
as Mary's chieftains. Murray retained with him the 
citizens of the towns, the Presbyterian clergy, and 
18 



274 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

the most energetic, effective members of the nobility. 
With this array of fighting men, and the reins of au- 
thority in his hands, he called a convention of his 
adherents to secure their formal approval of his op- 
erations, at Stirling Castle, and immediately marched 
forth to surprise the enemy. He came upon the Duke 
of Chatellerault and Herries, and compelled them to 
make a treaty, March 18th, 1569. They acknowledged 
the young King, on condition of restoring refugees; 
and agreed upon a conference, to be held in April, 
for the final arrangement of conflicting claims. The 
regent employed the truce wisely. He subdued the 
Borders, and strengthened himself for a controlling 
power in the assembly of the nobility. The evening 
before it commenced its sessions, April 9th, the duke 
and Herries received letters from Mary Stuart, con- 
demning their concessions and plan of pacification. 
Chatellerault quailed beneath her reproaches, and 
slept till the dawn of morning. Lord Herries was so 
overcome, that he was taken severely ill. They 
therefore retracted, and Murray put an end to dis- 
cussion and explanation, by ordering his guards to 
escort them to the Castle of Edinburgh, and place 
them under the care of the kirkaldy of Grange. He 
then marched triumphantly among the startled ad- 
herents of Mary, ravaged their country, and took 
their castles, leaving a track of conquest from Inver- 
ness to Dumfries, from Dunbar to Glasgow. He then 
ordered the assembly of the estates of the realm to 
convene July 25th, 1569. He was met at Inverness 
upon his return from the North, by Lord Boyd, whom 
Mary had dispatched to negotiate with her brother 
concerning articles of restoration to her kingdom and 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 275 

her marriage with Norfolk. The duke was encour- 
aged in his ambitious hopes, and a renewal of his 
scheme, which the disastrous issue of the conference 
interrupted. Mary's partizans at home, and the 
friends of peace in England, favored the union of a 
Catholic Queen with a Protestant duke, whose con- 
sanguinity to Henry VII. was an element of popular- 
ity. Elizabeth was feeble in health, and had made no 
provision for the succession to the throne ; those cir- 
cumstances increased the interest in the projected 
marriage, to which Mary Stuart consented, contrary- 
to an expressed resolution not to marry again. 

Murray's conquests in Scotland had augmented his 
own strength, and greatly darkened Mary's pros- 
pects. Elizabeth sent to the convention at Perth, in 
July, three propositions. The first was to restore 
Mary Stuart to her throne ; the second, if more desir- 
able, suggested the associating of young James with 
her in sovereignty ; and the third, if the former were 
rejected, was that the people of Scotland receive the 
captive as a private person. The Queen of England, 
doubtless, did not expect the acceptance of either, 
amid the hostile parties and interests of a distracted 
realm. Mary was sadly disappointed in the issue of 
the discussions at Perth, and addressed herself to 
other possibilities of success, with an unflagging en- 
ergy, which has a masculine tone, in singular contrast 
with her charming beauty. She corresponded affec- 
tionately with the Duke of Norfolk, who kept open 
doors, and with the tact of ancient Absalom, " stole 
the hearts of the people." Wrote the Ambassador 
Fenelon to Catherine de Medici : 

" The affairs of the Queen of Scotland are obtain- 



276 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

ing great strength by means of the Duke of ^Norfolk, 
who proposes to marry her .... and even if the 
Queen of England should not approve of the scheme, 
they will nevertheless carry it out, so far are matters 
already advanced .... and if she does not speedily 
resolve to procure the liberation and restoration of the 
Queen of Scotland, they will force her to do so 
against her will." 

The watchful, observant, and determined Elizabeth 
had heard intimations of her rival's manifold plans, 
and replied to the plea of Fenelon in behalf of Mary: 

" I am aware of all the intrigues that have been 
carried on since she entered the kingdom. Princes 
have large ears, which hear far and near. She has 
attempted to move the interior of this realm against 
me, by means of some of my subjects, who promise 
her great things ; but they are persons who conceive 
mountains, and bring forth only molehills. They 
thought I was so foolish that I should not perceive 
their doings." 

The Queen of England turned her searching sus- 
picion toward the matrimonial plot, and soon knew 
it all. 

When the perseverance of ^Norfolk, in the face of 
stern remonstrance, the treachery of privy counselors, 
and the extending sympathy of the nobility in the 
contemplated alliance, were fully revealed, the intel- 
ligent madness of her rage spread paleness and trem- 
bling among brave and powerful men. The duke 
withdrew into jSTorfolk, followed by others of the no- 
bility, to mature a revolt. Spain had furnished 
money to the fugitive Queen, and her lover. Pope 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 277 

Pius V. wrote to the Spanish general * in Nether- 
lands, where he had just crushed an insurrection: 

" We conjure thy nobleness, and we beseech thee 
with our whole soul not to forget to restore to liberty 
our dear daughter in Jesus Christ, the Queen of Scot- 
land, and again to establish her, if possible, in her 
kingdom. Thy nobleness could not undertake any 
thing more agreeable and more useful to Almighty 
God, than the deliverance of this Queen, who has de- 
served well of the Catholic faith, and who is op- 
pressed by the power of her heretical enemies." 

If there had been a united and fearless uprising of 
all who hated Elizabeth, in connection with foreign 
Catholic aid, even the haughty daughter of Henry 
VIII., and Protestantism also, might have yielded to 
the political storm. But no time was lost in the pal- 
ace of the mighty Queen. Mary was ordered to be 
taken from Wingfield, one of the estates of the kind 
Earl of Shrewsbury, and more closely confined in the 
stronghold of Tutbury. Thwarted and endangered, 
the prisoner was undaunted. She wrote to Eenelon, 
" I beseech you, encourage my friends to be on their 
guard, and to act for me now or never ; " and added, 
to Norfolk, an earnest entreaty to act bravely, and 
not trouble himself about her life, as God would keep 
her in safety. But Norfolk was not equal to the des- 
perate game. He wrote an obsequious, cowardly let- 
ter to Elizabeth, and in reply, she commanded his im- 
mediate return to court. Overcome with fear, arising 
from his own irresolution, and his sovereign's threats, 
he went to London. His reception was an arrest, and 
imprisonment in the Tower. 

* The Duke of Alva. 



278 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

During the progress of these stirring, decisive 
events, Mary again transmitted a message to Eliza- 
beth, from a pen as faithful and ready in correspond- 
ence, as was her restless brain in expedients for re- 
trieving her lost fortunes. 

THE QUEEN OF SCOTS TO QUEEN ELIZABETH. 

" Madam, my good sister, wishing to exercise to 
the utmost the patience which it has pleased God to 
bestow on me in my adversity, I have refrained, as 
long as possible, from importuning you with my com- 
plaints, trusting that time, the father of truth, and 
your own good disposition, would lead you to perceive 
the malice of my enemies, who strive to trample me 
to the earth, and move you to pity one of your own 
blood — your equal ; who, next to God, has chosen you 
from among all other princes for her refuge, confid- 
ing in your favorable letters and kind promises, 
strengthened by the ties of consanguinity and near 
neighborhood, so that I have placed myself, voluntar- 
ily, and without constraint, into your hands and 
power, where I have remained above two years, some- 
times in hopes of your favor and support, from your 
courteous letters, at others, driven to despair by the 
underhand dealings and the false reports of my ene- 
mies. 

64 Nevertheless, my affection for you has always 
led me to hope for the best, and to suffer my wrongs 
patiently; but now that you listen to the malice of 
my rebels, as the Bishop of Ross informs me, refusing 
to hear the just complaint of her who has placed her- 
self voluntarily in your power, and thrown herself 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 279 

into your arms, I have presumed once more to try my 
fortune, and appeal to the Queen, my good sister her- 
self. Ah, madam, what stronger proof of my friend- 
ship can I offer than in thus putting my trust in you ! 
And, in return, will you destroy the hope which is 
placed in you by your sister and cousin, who neither 
can nor sought to obtain succor elsewhere ? Shall 
my confidence in you be disappointed, my patience 
prove vain, and the friendship and respect I cherish 
for you, be despised to such a degree that I cannot 
obtain what you could not justly refuse to the great- 
est stranger in the world ? I have never offended you, 
but have loved and honored you, and tried by all 
means to please you, and to assure you of my kind 
disposition toward you. False reports have been 
made to you about me, which you have credited so 
far as to treat me, not as a Queen and relative, come 
to seek support of you under your promise of favor, 
but as a prisoner, to whom you can impute the offense 
of a subject. 

" Since, madam, I cannot obtain permission to de- 
clare to you, face to face, my sincerity towards you, 
at least permit Monsieur de Rosse, my ambassador, to 
give you an account of my public as well as private 
deportment, and he has on many occasions witnessed 
the grief I feel at not knowing wherein I have of- 
fended you, and on being compelled to repeat my old 
requests, respecting which I beg you to answer him 
and me too, namely, that it may please you, according 
to my first requests, to oblige me forever, by assisting 
me with your support to recover the state to which it 
has pleased God to call me among my subjects, as 
you have always promised; or if consanguinity, my 



280 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

affection for yon, and my long patience, should not 
seem to you to deserve this ; at least do not refuse me 
the liberty to depart as freely as I came, and retire 
either to France or elsewhere, among my friends and 
allies ; or should it please you to use rigor, and treat 
me as an enemy (which I have never been to you, nor 
desired to be, ) allow me to redeem myself by ransom, 
as is the custom among all princes, even those who 
are enemies, and give me opportunity to negotiate 
with the said princes, my friends and allies, for rais- 
ing the said ransom. 

" And, meanwhile, I entreat you, as I have in- 
trusted my person to you, and offered in all things to 
follow your counsel, that I may not be injured by the 
extortions of my rebels against my faithful subjects, 
and that I may not be weakened, for having relied 
on your promises, by the loss of Dombertran. [Dum- 
barton.] 

" And if the false reports of my enemies prevent 
you from bestowing any consideration on these points 
and my humble requests, and you are resolved to 
take amiss all I have done, with the intention of 
pleasing you, at least do not permit my life to be en- 
dangered without having deserved it, although 
the Abbot of Donfermelin has spread a report, 
and boasted that it is your intention, which I cannot 
believe, to put me into the hands of my rebel subjects, 
or other such in that country, whom they equally ap- 
prove of, and with whom I am not acquainted. I 
protest that I have never had the wish to offend you, 
or to do anything which could disolease you; nor 
have merited the cruel return of being so slighted, 
as the Bishop of Rosse has already assured you, and 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 281 

will do again, if you but please to grant him an au- 
dience. Wherefore, I beseech you most humbly, and 
as above, to acquaint him with your determination; 
if not out of affection, let it be out of pity. You have 
experienced what it is to suffer affliction; you may 
thence judge what others suffer from it. 

" You have listened long enough to my enemies and 
their inventions to make you suspicious of me; it is 
time to consider what are their motives for this, and 
their double dealing towards me, and what I am to 
you, and the affection towards you which has induced 
me to come to a place where you have such power 
over me. Call to mind the offers of friendship which 
you have made me, and the friendship which you 
have promised me, and how much I wish to please 
you, insomuch as to have neglected the support of 
other princes, by your advice and on the promise of 
yours. Forget not the rights of hospitality in my 
case alone, and weigh all this with the respect of your 
confidence, honor, and pity for one of your own blood, 
and then I trust I shall have no occasion to repent me. 

" Consider also, madam, what place I have filled, 
and how I was brought up, and, if experiencing, by 
means of my rebels or other enemies, so different a 
treatment from that, from hands from which I hoped 
for every comfort, how ill I can support such a bur- 
den, added to that of your displeasure, which is 
hardest of all to bear, which I have never deserved ; 
nor to be so closely imprisoned, that I have no means 
of receiving intelligence about my affairs, or taking 
any steps whatever for settling them, or consoling in 
the least such of my faithful subjects as are suffering 
on my account. Far am I. from supporting them as 



282 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

I hoped. Again I beseech yon, let not the false re- 
ports and malicions designs of my enemies make you 
forget so many other points in my favor ; and, lastly, 
if nothing else can move your natural pity, despise 
not the prayers of the kings, my good brothers and 
allies, to whose ambassadors I have written, begging 
them to make urgent intercession with you in my be- 
half. 

" And that you may not take it amiss, I entreat 
you to excuse me, if, in case you will not listen to 
your natural kindness and pity, for which I have 
loved and honored you so much, I beg them to inform 
the said kings of my necessity, and to solicit them to 
lend that aid in my affairs which I have expected 
from you, and which I now crave from you before 
any other. If you are pleased to grant it me, as I 
hope, you will find in the end that I have never de- 
served to lose it. If in this, or in any point of my 
letter, I offend you, excuse it, on account of the ex- 
treme urgency of my cause, and the infinite trouble 
that I am in. 

" I conclude, by referring to the Bishop of Ross, 
who will give you every information, and beg you to 
credit him as myself, who present my humble recom- 
mendations, praying God to make you thoroughly ac- 
quainted with both my intention and my conduct. 

" From Tutbury, this x. of ^November, [1569.] 
" Your very kind and affectionate 

sister and cousin, Mary R. 

" I beg you to excuse me if I write ill, for my im- 
prisonment makes me unwell, and less capable of this 
or any other employment." 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 283 

The Catholic adherents of Norfolk had gone too far 
to pause in rebellion. After conferring with the 
Pope, and appealing to interested nobles, they 
marched boldly, numbering five hundred horsemen, 
toward Durham. Upon a showy banner was painted 
Christ with the five bleeding wounds, which was held 
proudly up by " Old Kichard Norton." The gates of 
Durham flew open at the approach of the army ; the 
Bible was burned, the prayer-book destroyed, the 
communion table demolished, and the papal forms of 
worship established on the ruins. The rebels issued 
a proclamation, and soon mustered more than six 
thousand cavalry and infantry. 

It was a crisis to rouse the spirit and test the capac- 
ity of Elizabeth. She arrested Throckmorton, the 
Bishop of Ross, and other distinguished friends of 
Norfolk. She transferred Mary Stuart to Coven- 
try," a strong castle in Warwickshire, beyond the 
possibility of sudden escape, and with orders that she 
be executed if the rebellion succeeded. Men of war 
were commissioned to cruise between the English 
coast and Netherlands, and Elizabeth gathered with 
great rapidity her royal soldiery to the imperial 
standard. The enemy, after vain attempts to enter 
large towns, besieged Barnard Castle, and at the end 
of a twelve days' assault, assisted by mutiny within 
its walls, took the fortress, December 12th. Four 
days later, the insurgents, despairing of victory, dis- 
banded, and the chieftains fled for refuge to Scotland. 
The Earl of Northumberland fell into the hands of 

* Coventry is 85 miles northwest of London. By tin's re- 
move Mary was brought nearer London, though she was des- 
tined not to see the face of Elizabeth for some time to come. 



2Bj. MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

Murray, and was sent to take Mary's vacant place 
in LochJeven Castle. 

To confirm his shaken authority, Murray now ap- 
plied to the Queen for money and the munitions of 
war, and desired that his sister be sent to his safe 
keeping. While the request was under discussion, 
the regent traveled from Stirling toward Edinburgh. 
At Linlithgow, through which he was to pass, lived 
James Hamilton, of Bothwell-Haugh, a deadly enemy 
of Murray. Confiscation, which was the spoils of 
victory, impoverished him, with many others. His 
wife had been turned from home by Bellenden, a 
devoted servant of the regent, to whom the small es- 
tate had been given as a reward, in the darkness of 
night, and left to wander partially clothed till morn- 
ing, amid a desolate forest. When the dawn il- 
lumined her path, reason's light was quenched. She 
was a despairing maniac. Bothwell-Haugh swore 
vengeance on Murray, as the responsible author of 
the ravages which secured the cruel deed. The re- 
gent approached Linlithgow with his imposing train. 

" The archbishop of St. Andrews, uncle of Both- 
well-Haugh, possessed a house, in front of which 
Murray and his cavalcade would necessarily pass. 
This house was placed at the disposal of Bothwell- 
Haugh, who made every preparation for the unfail- 
ing performance of the act of vengeance which he 
had concerted with the other Hamiltons. He took 
his station in a small room, or wooden gallery, which 
commanded a full view of the street. To prevent his 
heavy footsteps being heard, for he was booted and 
spurred, he placed a feather-bed on the floor ; to se- 
cure against any chance observation of his shadow, 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 235 

which, had the sun broke out, might have caught the 
eve, he hung up a black cloth on the opposite wall ; 
and, having barricaded the door in front, he had a 
swift horse ready saddled in the stable at the back. 
Even here his preparations did not stop ; for, observ- 
ing that the gate in the wall which enclosed the gar- 
den was too low to admit a man on horseback, he re- 
moved the lintel stone, and, returning to his chamber, 
cut, in the wooden panel immediately below the lat- 
tice window, where he watched, a hole just sufficient 
to admit the barrel of his caliver. Having taken 
these precautions, he loaded the piece with four bul- 
lets, and calmly awaited his victim." 

Murray was warned to avoid High street, because 
rumors were rife of fatal plots. But the dense crowd 
flocked the way, and he rode calmly forward, amid 
the loud shouts of an excited populace. When he 
reached the archbishop's house, Hamilton took cool 
and fatal aim at the noble form of Murray. There 
was a startling report, and the regent reeled from his 
horse, while the silence of horror, broken with mut- 
tered wrath, fell suddenly upon the exultant throngs. 
Then they rushed like sounding surges toward the 
house, from which Hamilton fled before an entrance 
could be made, and reached safely Hamilton Castle. 
He was Avelcomed by the Archbishop of St. Andrews 
and nobles present. The same day, January 20th, 
1570, Murray died. He expired placidly as the set- 
ting sun, in Christian faith and hope. He was a 
great and heroic man, upon the surface of whose 
splendid career, were acts of violence and treachery, 
not excusable, yet scarcely avoidable, from the in- 
trigues and pressure of tempestuous times. His peo- 



236 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

pie called him the Good Regent, and his administra- 
tion of justice entitled him to the compliment. A 
sincere Protestant, his court wore ever the air and 
sober livery of the Puritan religion. Ambitious, and 
not always just, his tragical death is another illus- 
tration of the uncertainty and brevity of earthly 
honors. 

The fall of this brilliant ruler, whose virtues, con- 
sidering all the circumstances of history, altogether 
transcended his errors, reanimated the faction of 
Mary Stuart. The Hamiltons again took the field; 
Lethington, and other distinguished captives of Mur- 
ray were released ; the Pope issued a sentence of ex- 
communication and deposition against Elizabeth, to 
revenge the Catholics; and a certain Leonard Dease, 
of Gilsland, had raised the standard of insurrection, 
with three thousand men. The Queen of England 
felt that danger threw ominous shadows upon her 
throne. The Earl of Surrey and Lord Scrope were 
sent to ravage Scotland on the east and west, and the 
Earl of Lennox was dispatched to guide the party of 
his son, young James VI., in the place of the mur- 
dered Murray. During these bloody expeditions, 
Mary wrote to the Archbishop of Glasgow, urging 
her cause : 

THE QUEEN OF SCOTS TO THE ARCHBISHOP OF GLAS- 
GOW. 

"Tutbury, 30th April, (1570.) 
Monsieur de Glascow — I would not for the world 
neglect things of importance to me, or which concern 
my duty to God ; and hence it is that, seeing an army 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 287 

in my country, and a most injurious proclamation 
issued against me, I have risked this dispatch to the 
king, monsieur my good brother, and to the queen, 
and to all my relatives, wherein I have recommended 
you to them, and begged them to afford you the best 
means for applying yourself to my affairs. I there- 
fore inform you of this, that you may act accord- 
ingly ; and, whatever may come of it, I beg you on no 
account to be absent from court at a time so impor- 
tant as this, but to urge warmly the promised sup- 
port. 

" The rest I write you in cipher, but this I wished 
to signify with my own hand, to inform you of the 
need that I and mine have of prompt assistance. In 
short, make one last effort for your Queen and good 
mistress, your country and kindred, and after me, 
for your future prince. The Bishop of Ross has in- 
formed me of a deanery which I have given him to 
keep him in my service, for he has nothing whatever 
in Scotland. I beg him to get this matter settled 
forthwith, and desire that George * be dispatched 
from London without difficulty, for his services merit 
it, and the good example he has set is important at 
this moment. James and Baron are in my employ, 
and are not gone to him but with a promise to be al- 
ways faithful to me. It is, therefore, my intention 
that their wages be paid them, about which you will 
give directions to my treasurer; and the same in re- 
gard to Henri Kir in quality of secretary; and I shall 
be very glad when Roullet returns, and send me, if 
you can obtain it, a passport for Thomas Levingston 
to come to serve me; for should Crafurd go abroad, 
* George Douglas. 



288 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

and I think he will, I shall not have any gentlemen 
attendants left, and they will not permit any to come 
to me from Scotland. So, referring to my cipher, 
and what you will hear from the bearer of this, I will 
conclude, praying God to have you in his holy keep- 
ing. 

" Your very good mistress and friend, 

" Mar* K." 

The captive Queen again addressed her represen- 
tative at the court of France on the 13th of May, 
commending Douglas, who, it will be recollected, 
served her while at Lochleven Castle, and giving a 
glimpse of her imprisonment : 

THE QUEEJN" OF SCOTS TO THE ARCHBISHOP OF GLAS- 
GOW. 

" Monsieur de Glascow — George Douglas having 
obtained permission to visit me, and to make his apol- 
ogies, and to beg that I would arrange his affairs in 
such manner as I may judge proper, provided that 
what I have given be secured to him, should I think 
he merits it, or at least, that he may be put to the 
proof if he has ever offended me, explaining that 
what he wrote to me had no other object than to let 
me know that, rather than I should doubt his fidelity, 
or before he would seek an appointment without my 
leave, he would relinquish all that I had given him, 
or might give him. I have been very glad to afford 
him an opportunity to state his reasons, from the de- 
sire I have that he should give me as much occasion 
to be a good mistress to him in future, and from the 
pleasure I shall feel in recompensing the great and 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 289 

signal service which he has done me, and which, he 
says, he wishes to continue to do me as long as he 
lives, of which I have no doubt ; and in consequence 
of this, I have not only favorably received his excuses 
and justifications, but relieved him from all fear that 
I shall ever listen to any report to his disadvan- 
tage, without first hearing him. I inform you of 
this purposely, that you may cause him to be paid 
quarterly, as usual, wherever he may be, according 
to the capacity under which he is entered, notwith- 
standing the commands I formerly gave you and 
others to the contrary. 

" As respects myself, my health is but very indif- 
ferent. I am strictly guarded, and without any 
means of arranging my affairs, either here, or in 
Scotland, or abroad, unless M. de la Mothe, by com- 
mand of the king, takes pity upon me. I have but 
just thirty persons — men, women, servants and offi- 
cers — as you will perceive by the list and the new or- 
ders, which will show whether I am a prisoner or not. 

" Roullet has a continual fever, w r hich is the reason 
why I cannot write to you more at length, which 
would be troublesome to me just npw. Several of 
my people are ill; so is also M. de Ross, and so he 
hears nothing about my affairs, and my people are 
badly treated, as M . de Ross will inform you. I beg 
you will represent all this to the king, the queen, his 
mother, and messieurs, his brothers, requesting they 
will send some one to speak in my behalf. 

" Awaiting your reply to this by Kir, I will con- 
clude by recommending myself to your favor, and 
praying God to grant you a long and happy life. 

19 



290 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

" Send me a physician, consulting Lusgerie, to 
whom I beg you to remember me ; and as regards 
your own affairs, tell me what you think would suit 
you, and I will write immediately to support you, for 
I am aware of your necessities. 

" I had forgotten to tell you that, as to the order 
for a thousand francs, which is in your hands, you 
must retain eight hundred, and give the remainder to 
Kir, for the purpose of paying his debts. I have also 
granted him another thousand, by virtue of a letter I 
have written to my treasurer, and which will serve as 
an order, until such time as you send one for my sig- 
nature, also for the purpose of paying his debts there ; 
these two thousand francs must be deducted from the 
gift which I made him. I beg you will not fail 
doing this ; and for your security, this present, signed 
by my hand, must suffice until you send me an order, 
as I fear my treasurer will not honor any but written 
orders. 

" Your very good mistress and friend. 

" Mary E. 

" If M. the cardinal is at too great a distance, send 
him my letters by some one, and forward to me his 
answer, and meanwhile, let me know by Kir, what is 
your opinion, and what will be the best and safest 
means of securing his money, and the most conven- 
ient manner for me to pay it." 

July 12th, the Earl of Lennox was formally elected 
regent of Scotland, while the Duke Chatellerault, and 
the Earls Huntley and Argyle were the leaders of the 
opposing faction, which was nearly equal in strength 
to the royal administration. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 291 

Elizabeth, upon the restoration of the regency, 
evacuated the kingdom, and opened a discussion of 
the treaty with Mary Stuart, which was proposed the 
year before at Perth. 

After a protracted consideration at Chatsworth,* 
where she had been confined since May, the conditions 
were mainly accepted, and the prisoner's heart was 
wild with hope and gladness. Her weary form be- 
came elastic, and her pale face luminous with antici- 
pated deliverance. To Elizabeth she wrote: 

" iSTo scruple now remains to prevent our sincere 
and reciprocal friendship, which I desire beyond that 
of any other prince, in proof of which I consent to 
place in your hands the dearest jewel and only com- 
fort which God has given me in this world, my only 
and beloved son, whose education, though desired by 
many, is entrusted to you, to be preferred both by 
him and by me to all others. 

" My intention is sincere to observe the conditions 
agreed on between us, and I am resolved hencefor- 
ward, in order to end my unfortunate voyage, to cast 
my anchor in the port of your natural goodness to- 
wards me. Having recourse, instead of any other 
surety, to the merit of my humble submission and 
obedience, which I offer you as though I had the 
honor to be your daughter (as I have be your sister 

* Chatsworth, the seat of the Duke of Devonshire, was the 
most splendid private residence in England, perhaps in Europe. 
Tt is located on the river Derwent, in the county of Derby, 
and is about 30 miles due north of Tutbury, Mary's former 
place of activity. 



292 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

and next cousin,) and yielding to none in desire to 
obey and honor you in future, may it please you to 
accept me as entirely yours." 

Mary alludes to the treaty in a letter upon the 
death of John Beton, a near friend, whom she sin- 
cerely mourned : 

TO MONSIEUR DE GLASCOW, MY AMBASSADOR IN 

FRANCE. 

" From Chatswortii, October, [1570.] 
" Monsieur de Glascow — Instead of relieving you, 
as I hoped, by these letters, from all anxiety, and as- 
suring you by this dispatch of the entire confidence 
which I place in you, and the satisfaction which it 
gave me to receive so high a testimony of the sin- 
cerity of your conduct, as that given me by the car- 
dinal, my uncle, in his letter, I am obliged, to my 
extreme regret, to communicate a mournful circum- 
stance, which has caused me the deepest sorrow, as 
Eoullet and others of your good friends can testify. 
In short, God has at one stroke afflicted you and me, 
by taking from us your brother, the only minister 
whom I selected to comfort and counsel me, in this 
my long affliction and banishment from among my 
good servants and friends. We are bound to praise 
God for all things, a point on which you can better 
admonish me than I you, but more especially ought 
we to praise him, because he died a good Christian, 
a good man, beloved by every one, regretted both by 
friends and enemies : but above all by me, who, hav- 
ing performed the duty of a kind mistress and friend, 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 293 

in seeing him properly treated and attended to, served 
as a witness of his good end, solemnizing with my 
tears the close of his life, and accompanying his soul 
with my prayers. ISTow he is happy, and there, 
whither we must all hope to go, while I am deprived, 
amid all my afflictions, of a faithful and tried ser- 
vant. The sorrow and srrief which I know vou will 
feel for his death, would make me apprehensive of 
losing you likewise, so incessant are become the at- 
tacks of misfortune, were I not aware of the good 
sense you possess, and that your fear of God, and 
your great zeal for my interest, will cause you to sub- 
mit to his will, and to take care of yourself in order 
to serve me. 

" I have made up my mind to have your other 
brother about me, and in the same capacity as the de- 
ceased, thereby confirming the gift made to the latter, 
agreeably to his last wish, which he called me to wit- 
ness. I, therefore, beg you to send him to me, fully 
instructed as to what you may desire I should do for 
you and yours, relying upon it that I shall exert my- 
self as zealously as for any servant I have, and more 
so. He had two of his relatives and servants here; 
the one named Arelin Bethem, who was formerly 
with me, and whom, for his sake, I shall be most 
willing to serve whenever occasion may offer; the 
other, Thomas Archibald, whom I have taken into 
my household, and am equally disposed to serve. If 
I could do more to show how much I loved and es- 
teemed your late brother, most gladly would I do it. 

" As to yourself, Roullet can bear witness how lit- 
tle heed I gave to those who wished to lessen you in 
my good opinion ; to prove this to you, I will either 



$94 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

make Quantly, on whom all the blame is thrown, con- 
fess his fault, for which he shall be rewarded accord- 
ing to his deserts, or give the name of his author, 
which I shall transmit to M. the cardinal and you, so 
that you can consult together, and for your satisfac- 
tion take such steps as you may consider necessary for 
your honor, and for making public the high opinion 
and confidence I have in you, of which I beg you to 
be assured; and as a proof that you may not doubt 
the assurance which I give you of my favor, take all 
the care you can of yourself, that you may serve me 
whenever it may please God that I shall return to 
my country, where I hope to have you near me, as 
one of the pillars on which I shall found my gov- 
ernment. 

" If this treaty be soon concluded, I shall be very 
glad to see you here. In the meantime I shall write 
you a full account of my affairs by the bearer of this, 
whom I beg you will send back as soon as possible 
with your answer, as there are certain points concern- 
ing which it is necessary that I should have a reply 
in a month. I have signed an acknowledgment for 
something that I owe him ; I beg you will get his 
business dispatched, and send him back to me forth- 
with. 

" Make my apologies to those to whom I have not 
written with my own hand ; for, since the death of 
Beton, I have had a complaint in one eye, which is 
much inflamed, and I think that the pleasure I take 
in writing to you will not amend it, as you will per- 
ceive from the first page. 

" Now, to conclude, I pray God to comfort you, 
and to be assured of my good will and gratitude for 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 295 

jour good services ; and send your brother to me, for 
I have no one here to attend upon me, and to give 
orders to my household, and, besides, he belongs to 
you; though I am sure you have a good friend in 
Roullet, and a friend in Seyton, who will be as ready 
in your absence to render you the services of a good 
friend, as a relation, or any other person that you 
might have about me, both for the affection which 
she bears toward all those whom she knows to have 
been faithful servants to me, and on account of the 
kindness she feels for her good friends, among whom 
she reckoned your deceased brother, whose soul may 
God take into his keeping; and grant consolation to 
you and to me, an end to my afflictions, or patience 
to bear them according to his good pleasure, to whom 
be praise, in good or in evil. 

" Your very kind mistress and friend, 

" Mary R." 

But Mary was doomed to speedy disappointment. 
Charles IX. of France, and other foreign princes, dis- 
approved of parts of the treaty. Elizabeth embraced 
the embarrassments as a sufficient reason for closing 
the negotiation ; and the promise of a pacific disposal 
of conflicting interests was entirelv blasted. Marv 
was beneath a sky of deeper gloom than ever before 
since her captivity. " During the two years and a 
half which she had been a prisoner in England, she 
had sought to obtain her deliverance and restoration 
by the exertions of her party in Scotland, by her 
marriage with the head of the English nobility, by 
the insurrection of Elizabeth's Catholic subjects, by 
the union of the Scottish lords, sustained by the court 



296 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

of France, after Murray's death, and, finally, by an 
accommodation with her fortunate and powerful 
rival. All attempts had, however, failed. The 
Scotch who were faithful to her cause, had been over- 
come by Murray in 1569, and weakened by Eliza- 
beth in 1570 ; her marriage with the Duke of Norfolk 
had met with but little favor in Scotland, and had 
been positively prohibited in England; the English 
Catholics had twice revolted, and had been twice de- 
feated ; the accommodation negotiated at Chatsworth, 
with so many concessions on her part, had been re- 
jected; and France had not only failed to support 
her, but seemed likely to renounce her ancient league 
with Scotland, to form a new alliance with England." 
She now turned to Philip II. of Spain, whom she 
hoped might be persuaded to attempt an invasion of 
England. To do this, she must assure him of the co- 
operation of the Duke of Norfolk at the head of an 
armed force, whenever the allies landed on English 
soil. Mary had maintained a familiar correspon- 
dence with Norfolk in cipher unknown to Elizabeth. 
The plague, which was raging in London, entered 
the Tower, and the duke was permitted to retire to a 
private residence, partially guarded, upon a solemn 
premise to close forever all communication with 
Mary Stuart, and abandon the design of marriage. 
With the doom of a traitor impending if he broke his 
pledge, to which he consented, he immediately re- 
newed the most tender expressions of affection for the 
prisoner, and she reciprocated the devotion in her own 
ardent and eloquent language. He was thereupon 
ripe for a conspiracy, the last resort of thwarted am- 
bition. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 297 

The Bishop of Koss, in connection with the Floren- 
tine Ridolfi, matured the plan of operations. Ridolii 
was a wealthy banker, a relative of the Medici family, 
and a man of great influence with the English nobil- 
ity. The Duke of Norfolk was consulted, and the 
Florentine dispatched to the Duke of Alva, residing 
at Brussels. Through this Catholic counselor and 
general, it was hoped that an appeal to the Pope and 
Philip II., would secure soldiers and arms for de- 
throning the Queen of England, and restoring Mary 
to sovereignty. The fading, defeated captive, en- 
gaged with youthful enthusiasm in the plot. The 
Duke of Alva thus addressed King Philip on the sub- 
ject : 

" Considering the pity and interest with which the 
unworthy treatment of the Queen of Scotland and 
her adherents cannot fail to inspire your majesty; 
considering the obligation under which you are placed 
by God, to obtain by all means in your power, the 
triumphant restoration of Catholicism in those isl- 
ands; considering, moreover, the injuries which the 
Queen of England does in so many ways, and on so 
many sides, to your majesty and your subjects, with- 
out any hopes of being on better terms with her, as 
regards religion and neighborhood, as long as she 
reigns; it appears to me that the plan of the Queen 
of Scotland and the Duke of Norfolk, if it could be 
properly carried out, would be the best method of 
remedying the evil. 

......... 

" If the secret were not kept, the enterprise would 
fall to the ground ; the lives of both the Queen of 
Scotland and the Duke of Norfolk would be endan- 



298 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

gered ; the Queen of England would find the oppor- 
tunity, which she has sought so long, for getting rid 
of her and her partisans; the hopes of the Catholic 
religion would be crushed forever, and the whole 
would recoil upon your majesty. . . . Wherefore, 
no one can think of advising your majesty to furnish 
the assistance sought of you, under the form in which 
it is requested. But if the Queen of England should 
die, either a natural death or any other death, or if 
her person should be seized without your majesty's 
concurrence, then I should perceive no further diffi- 
culty. The proposals between the Queen of England 
and the Duke of Anjou would cease, the French 
would be less fearful that your majesty should seek 
to become master of England, the Germans would 
look upon you with less distrust, since you would 
have no other object but to sustain the Queen of Scot- 
land against the rival claimants of the crown of Eng- 
land. In that case, it would be easy to reduce them 
to reason before other princes could interfere, as we 
could profit by the convenience of the Duke of Nor- 
folk's county, where we could disembark the six thou- 
sand men he requires, not within the forty days 
during which he could maintain himself unassisted, 
but within thirty or twenty-five days." 

July 7th, 1571, Ridolfi divulged, at the Escurial, 
the scheme of conspiracy. It was to murder Eliza- 
beth while she was traveling, and one James Graffs 
was the accepted assassin ; then revolution would fin- 
ish the papal work in both kingdoms. While the 
mode of destroying the English Queen, and other 
points in the bold design, were under exciting discus- 
sion in the Spanish court, and among interested 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 299 

princes, suspicion, first awakened in the mind of the 
vigilant Cecil, by letters from Bailly, who was con- 
fined in Marshalsea prison on account of an open de- 
fence of Mary, led to a full disclosure of the plot. 
These letters were directed to the Bishop of Ross, and 
related to the conspiracy. Bailly was removed to the 
Tower and put on the rack. 

He confessed all he knew, establishing the exist- 
ence of the daring combination, but did not reveal 
the names of the guilty parties. In this uncertainty 
the affairs continued, until several months later, when 
civil war in Scotland was resumed with terrific sever- 
ity. The Archbishop of St. Andrews was captured 
by the Earl of Lennox and executed. His death lent 
an unsparing cruelty to the contest. Mary, in a brief 
letter to the Archbishop of Glasgow, disclosed her 
unbroken attachment to the Catholic faith : 

THE QUEEN OF SCOTS TO THE ARCHBISHOP OF GLAS- 
GOW. 

" Sheffield,* 18th September, 1571. 
" M. de Glascow — though John Gordon, the bearer 
of this, is a Protestant, yet he is a faithful servant to 
me, and has written against Knox and the ministers, 
in favor of my authority, and I hope that in time and 
in the society of learned men, he will become con- 
verted ; to this end I beg you will introduce him to the 
most learned, as Master Riggan began ; and besides, 
my Lord Hundly, and my lord his father, are now at 

* Mary had been removed from Chatsvvorth to this place. 
Chatsworth is about fifteen miles directly southwest of Shef- 
field. 



300 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

the castle, having lost all their property for adhering 
to my cause. I beg you, therefore to do all in your 
power for the bearer, agreeably to the open letter 
which I have given to the bearer, and to continue to 
him his usual pension, and take pains to gain him, for 
he is a very learned young man, of an amiable dis- 
position, and related to many worthy persons. I 
have no doubt, if he could but be sent to an instructor 
who is a Jesuit, he might turn Catholic; and to this 
end, M. de Glascow, take care to send a supply of 
money, and keep up a communication with the palace, 
and act as a faithful servant of God and of your 
country. Take care of our country, as I have not 
means of doing so, and be assured that you will find 
in me a kind mistress and friend. Solicit all the am- 
bassadors and my relations to join you in interceding 
for me, and I pray God to grant his grace to you and 
patience to me. Ask the king to obtain for me a 
confessor, to administer the sacraments, in case God 
should call me by one way or other. 

" Your very good mistress and friend, 

" Mary K." 

The defenders of If ary Stuart in Scotland were re- 
duced to extremity, and Highford, a secretary of the 
Duke of Norfolk, volunteered to transmit money and 
dispatches to Lord Herries. But the dispatches 
treacherously reached Cecil, whom Elizabeth had 
created Lord Burghley. Norfolk, Highford, and 
Barker were arrested. Highford revealed the whole 
conspiracy minutely, and the cipher used by the 
duke in his correspondence concerning Ridolfi's mis- 
sion. Barker, who was aged and feeble, when he saw 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 301 

the rack, confessed, and confirmed the statements of 
Highford. Norfolk was now hopelessly involved in 
treason. After an attempt at denial, he was over- 
whelmed with the testimony of his friends, and ex- 
claimed, " I am betrayed ! " He then addressed his 
humble petitions for mercy to Elizabeth. The 
alarmed and inflexible Queen resolved to make him 
an example to the restless nobles, and indicate her 
royal strength and policy to foreign foes. The lords 
implicated by the letters were arrested, and the trial 
of Norfolk appointed. January 14, 1572, he was 
summoned before a jury of twenty-seven peers, in 
Westminster Hall. 

" The duke appeared before his judges with all the 
dignity of his rank, and displayed greater firmness 
of mind than he had previously manifested. He was 
accused of having conspired to deprive the Queen of 
her crown, and consequently, of life; of having 
sought to marry Mary Stuart, (whom he had termed 
an adulteress and murderess,) out of ambition, that 
he might use the claims she possessed to procure his 
own accession to the throne of England; of having 
aided the Queen's enemies in Scotland; and of hav- 
ing plotted on the Continent with the Pope and the 
King of Spain, to change the religion, and overthrow 
the government of England. His answer to these 
charges was skilful and plausible. Admitting all 
that he could not disprove, he confessed that he had 
been aware of matters which he ought not to have 
known, but to which he had never been willing to con- 
sent. Although he repudiated indignantly all 
thought of treason against the Queen, and alleged his 
inaction as a proof cf his innocence, he was unani- 



302 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

mously found guilty by his peers, and, on the 16th of 
January, condemned to be hanged, drawn and quar- 
tered. On hearing his sentence, he protested that he 
should die as faithful to his Queen as any man liv- 
ing ; then turning to his judges, he said with emotion ; 
' My lords, seeing you have put me out of your com- 
pany, I trust shortly to be in better company. I will 
not desire any of you all to make any petition for my 
life ; I will not desire to live : I am at a point. Only 
I beseech you, my lords, to be humble suitors to the 
Queen's majesty for my poor orphan children, that it 
will please her majesty to be good to them, and to 
take order for the payment of my debts, and some 
consideration of my poor servants/ 

" On his return to the Tower, he wrote to the 
Queen a letter expressive of the deepest affliction and 
the most heartfelt repentance, recommending to her 
generosity his children, * who,' he said, i now they 
have neither father nor mother, will find but few 
friends.' He did not cease to deplore the connection 
which he had formed with the Queen of Scotland, 
and, in bitter truthfulness, he remarked, c that noth- 
ing that anybody goeth about for her, nor that she 
doeth for herself prospereth.' " 

Mary, closely confined in the Castle of Sheffield, 
deprived of company and fresh air, sank in health 
and spirits under this fatal blow to her wild and soar- 
ing hopes. Elizabeth filled to the brim her cup of 
woe, by hurling long delayed reproaches upon the 
captive ; accusing her of ungoverned passions, ingrat- 
itude, and the ruin of Norfolk. Mary Stuart, true to 
her ancestral blood, retorted, with bitter charges of 
deception and cruelty. She did not conceal her dis- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 303 

appointment in the failure of the conspiracy, and said 
" she determined to allow herself to be fed with hopes 
no longer." She expressed patience, resignation to 
God's will, and courage to meet death. 

She affirmed that she did not entertain the thought 
of marrying Norfolk without the consent of the coun- 
cil of England, and added respecting him and other 
nobles, " that she should think herself worthy to be 
universally reputed ungrateful, and of bad natural 
disposition, if she did not employ all the means which 
God had left her in this world to mitigate the anger 
of the Queen of England against the Duke of Nor- 
folk, and the other nobles who had got into trouble 
by bearing her some good will, and if she did not 
supplicate her good sister to grant them her peace, or 
at least prevent them suffering any pain on her ac- 
count." Elizabeth vacillated on the sentence of the 
duke's execution. Justice impelled her to sign his 
death-warrant ; then the remembrance of his rela- 
tionship and high position, would induce her to re- 
voke it. The House of Commons, in which the 
Puritans had the ascendency, meanwhile demanded 
the execution of Mary Stuart ; a step that would " lay 
the axe at the root of the evil." Elizabeth refused to 
" put to death the bird, which, to escape the pursuit 
of the hawk, had fled to her for protection." But she 
no longer hesitated as to the fate of Norfolk. May 
31st, she signed the fatal warrant; and at 8 o'clock on 
the morning of June 2d, he was led to the scaffold 
upon Tower Hill. The nobler qualities of his char- 
acter shone forth finely beneath the gathering shad- 
ows of the spirit-land. His calm and unshrinking 
approach to the margin of dissolution, chained the at- 



304 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

tention of all spectators. In a long address, he 
avowed his sincere devotion to the Protestant re- 
ligion ; thanked Elizabeth for her promised kindness 
to his offspring; and conscious of his own ambitious 
aberrations from loyalty, he uttered these words of 
warning: "They that have factions, let them be- 
ware that they be given over betimes. Seek not to 
deviate God's doings, lest God prevent yours." The 
people were affected to tears. The duke then offered 
earnest prayer, and refusing to have his eyes covered, 
serenely laid his head on the block. The descending 
axe did its work, and the troubled brain of the con- 
spirator was at rest forever ! Mary Stuart's cause in 
England also expired on that scaffold. Insurrections 
and plots had succeeded each other in dark and san- 
guinary colors. Norfolk resembled Darnley in an 
indecision which ruined his most promising plans, 
but in everything else, was vastly the superior of the 
murdered King. Francis II., Chatelard, the mad 
lover, Bothwell, and Norfolk, had left Mary's side, 
and still she lived, weak in frame and strong in am- 
bition. 

Manifold and oppressive must have been the recol- 
lections that thronged the mind of the illustrious 
captive in her lonely apartments ! The gay dreams 
of a French court, the scenes of festivity and violence 
in Scotland's capital, the excitements of misplaced 
and lawless affection, lay in the past ; while the black- 
ness of despair hung menacingly on the future. Un- 
fortunte Queen, whose beauty was the rainbow upon 
the bosom of a perpetual storm ! 



CHAPTER VIII. 

The Earl of Lennox had been shot by Mary's par- 
tisans, and the Earl of Mar unanimously appointed 
his successor, at a meeting, of the King's nobles the 
next day. Unable to crush the faction of Mary 
Stuart, Elizabeth effected a truce between the hostile 
armies. A treaty with France calmed her fears of 
trouble with Charles IX., w T hen suddenly, as a falling 
thunderbolt, came the tidings of the merciless butch- 
ery of St. Bartholomew. A shriek of horror rose 
from Protestant England. The Queen assembled her 
council, and denied for some days audience to the 
Erench ambassador. When she relented, and con- 
sented to see him, she appeared with the ladies of her 
court, dressed in deep mourning. A sepulchral si- 
lence pervaded the apartment, and sealed every lip. 
While Fenelon* passed through the crowd, the eyes of 
the courtiers fell, and not a smile illumined his ad- 
vance toward the haughty and solemn sovereign. 
She expressed her sad surprise at the permission of 
his King to that Papal slaughter of Protestants, and 
her apprehension of betrayal, notwithstanding the 
treaty. She immediately fortified Dover and the Isle 
of Wight, levied troops, and made preparations for 
invincible self-defence. 

* When Charles IX. directed Fenelon to apologize to Queen 
Elizabeth for that dreadful massacre, he replied, "Sire, ad- 
dress yourself to those who advised you to do it." 
20 305 



306 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

Mary Stuart became an object of increasing solici- 
tude and vigilance. She was the star of Catholic 
empire in Scotland and England. Elizabeth de- 
termined, as her only security, to keep her captive 
in perpetual imprisonment. Divines and jurists 
united in proving Mary worthy of death, and both 
houses of Parliament desired to bring in a bill of at- 
tainder, which the Queen, to her honor, rejected. 
Mary was again visited by English lords, and ques- 
tioned upon the charges preferred against her. She 
denied any designed hostility to Elizabeth, in the pro- 
posed alliance with Norfolk, and affirmed that Ridol- 
fi's embassy aimed only at the deliverance of Scot- 
land, and her relations to Philip II. and Pius IX. 
The Queen of England disregarded the explanations, 
and entered upon an experiment similar to that often 
repeated vainly in Mary's experience. 

A plan was secretly laid to strengthen Protestant- 
ism in Scotland, by harmonizing antagonistic lead- 
ers, and delivering the royal prisoner to them for exe- 
cution, upon their urgent solicitation. Sir Henry 
Killigrew, brother-in-law of Cecil, (Lord Burghley,) 
left England on this mission, September 7th, in the 
fever of excitement which followed the intelligence of 
the Parisian tragedy. John Knox was in Edin- 
burgh, smitten with apoplexy, and evidently near 
death. The deliberate murder of seventy thousand 
Protestants, among them distinguished friends, 
roused the wasting energies of the great Reformer. 
He was carried to the church, and mounting his pul- 
pit, poured forth a torrent of eloquent execration on 
the slayers of his brethren. His influence aided the 
cause of Killigrew. The Earls Morton and Mar ac- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 307 

cepted the proposition of Elizabeth on these condi- 
tions : 

" That the Queen of England should take their 
young King under her protection : that his rights 
should not be invalidated by any sentence which 
might be passed upon his mother, and that they 
should be maintained by a declaration of the English 
Parliament : that a defensive alliance should be es- 
tablished between the two kingdoms : that the Earls of 
Huntingdon, Bedford or Essex, should be present at 
Mary's execution with two or three thousand men, 
and should afterwards assist the troops of the young 
King to reduce the city of Edinburgh : and finally, 
that that fortress should be placed in the regent's 
hands, and that England should pay all the arrears 
due to the Scottish troops. " 

The extravagant terms of the noblemen, with the 
sudden death of the regent, defeated the scheme. 
November 24th, Morton was elected to the regency 
of Scotland. Upon that same day in Edinburgh, 
John Knox was calmly waiting for his departure 
from earth. He had given to the session of his 
church a dving charge of great eloquence and power, 
which deeply impressed the minds of the reverent 
spectators. With a kindling eye and difficult breath- 
ing, he said, in vindication of his ministerial career : 

" The day approaches, and is now before the door, 
for which I have frequently and vehemently thirsted, 
when I shall be released from my great labors and in- 
numerable sorrows, and shall be with Christ. And 
now, God is my witness, whom I have served in the 



308 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

spirit, in the gospel of his Son, that I have taught 
nothing but the true and solid doctrine of the gospel 
of the Son of God, and have had it for my only object 
to instruct the ignorant, to confirm the faithful, to 
comfort the weak, the fearful, and the distressed, by 
the promises of grace, and to fight against the proud 
and rebellious by the divine threatenings. I know 
that many have frequently complained, and do still 
loudly complain, of my too great severity; but God 
knows that my mind was always void of hatred to the 
persons of those against whom I thundered the sever- 
est judgments. I cannot deny that I felt the greatest 
abhorrence at the sins in which they indulged, but 
still, I kept this one thing in view, that, if possible, 
I might gain them to the Lord. What influenced me 
to utter whatever the Lord put into my mouth, so 
boldly, and without respect of persons, was a rev- 
erential fear of my God, who called and of his grace 
appointed me to be a steward of divine mysteries, and 
a belief that he will demand an account of the man- 
ner in which I have discharged the trust committed 
to me, when I shall stand at last before his tribunal. 
I profess, therefore, before God, and before his holy 
angels, that I never made merchandize of the sacred 
word of God, never studied to please men, never in- 
dulged my own private passions or those of others, 
but faithfully distributed the talents entrusted to me 
for the edification of the church over which I 
watched. Whatever obloquy wicked men may cast 
on me respecting this point, I rejoice in the testimony 
of a good conscience. In the mean time, my dear 
brethren, do you persevere in the eternal truth of the 
gospel: wait diligently on the flock over which the 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 309 

Lord hath set you, and which he redeemed with the 
blood of his only begotten Son. And thou, my dear- 
est brother Lawson, fight the good fight, and do the 
work of the Lord joyfully and resolutely. The Lord 
from on high bless you, and the whole church of Edin- 
burgh, against whom, as long as they persevere in the 
word of truth which they have heard of me, the gates 
of hell shall not prevail.'' 

Beside his wife, Bannatyne, Campbell of Kinyean- 
cleuch, and Johnston of Elphingston, and Dr. Pres- 
ton, his intimate friends, watched in turn at his bed- 
side. Campbell inquired if he were in pain. " It is 
no painful pain, but such a pain as shall soon, I trust, 
put an end to the battle. I must leave the care of 
my wife and children to you, to whom you must be 
husband in my room." Soon after, his vision began 
to fail, and he desired his wife to read the 15th chap- 
ter of first Corinthians. He listened devoutly to the 
message of God, and then exclaimed, " Is not that a 
comfortable chapter ? O what sweet and salutary 
consolation the Lord has afforded me from that chap- 
ter ! ,: A few moments later he said, " ISTow for the 
last time I commend my soul,. spirit and body, (touch- 
ing three of his fingers,) into thy hand, Lord ! " 

Lingering longer than he expected, he added to his 
wife, " Go read where I cast my first anchor ; " mean- 
ing the 17th chapter of St. John. After a terrible 
spiritual conflict, he replied to the inquiry, if he 
heard the prayers offered in his behalf: "Would to 
God that you and all men bed heard them as I have 
heard them ; I praise God for that heavenly sound." 
About eleven o'clock at night, he sighed heavily, and 
said, " "Now it is come ! ,; He was speechless ; but 



310 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

-when desired to give a sign of peace, he raised both 
hands, and expired as placidly as an infant falling 
asleep. He was nearly sixty-seven* ; less worn with 
age than with conflicts and trials, whose field of bat- 
tle and storm is the immortality within. He had 
bared his breast before the enemies of his beloved 
church and native land. The skeptical sneer of par- 
tial historians falls powerless on the death-scene of 
such a man. Gifted and heroic, sometimes bold to a 
fault, he was beloved by the pious burghers, respected 
by the nobility, and universally lamented by the 
Presbyterian church. He discovered before his 
death, the coming complete triumph of the Protestant 
faith, under the energetic Morton. 

The Castle of Edinburgh, after an obstinate and 
brave resistance, fell into the hands of the besiegers, 
May 31st; and the last fortress of Mary's disheart- 
ened troops was a scathed and battered citadel, with- 
in whose walls were only suppliants for mercy. Not- 
withstanding much earnest interposition to save them, 
the Laird of Grange and his brother, Sir James Kir- 
kaldy, were led to the scaffold at the Cross of Edin- 
burgh, August 3d, 1573. They died loyal to Mary 

* John Knox, the leader of Protestantism in Scotland, was 
born in Haddington in the year 1505 — the month and day of 
his birth not being known — and died in Edinburgh November 
24, 1572. Froude justly says that he was " perhaps in that ex- 
traordinary age its most extraordinary man, and his charac- 
ter became the mold in which the later fortunes of his coun- 
try were cast." Again : "He was the one antagonist whom 
Mary could not soften nor Maitland deceive ; he it was who 
raise 1 the poor commons of his country into a stern and 
rugged people . . . men whom neither king, noble, nor priest 
could force again to submit to tyranny." 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 3H 

Stuart, and with the unshrinking courage of a sin- 
cere persuasion of past well-doing. With those 
strong adherents was lost hopelessly the cause of 
Mary Stuart in Scotland. She yielded to the fury 
of the tempest, and was the victim of extreme depres- 
sion. Since St. Bartholomew's day, she had suffered 
the severities of close captivity; forbidden corre- 
spondence and the visits of friends. Now that her 
faction was annihilated, more liberty was permitted. 
And she turned her thoughts to an altered tone of 
pleading with Elizabeth. With submissive air, she 
sought to gain by direct means, what she had at- 
tempted by force and stratagem. She wrote, at this 
period, the following letter : 

THE QUEEN OF SCOTS TO QUEEN" ELIZABETH. 

" Madam, my good sister — I consider myself very 
unfortunate in having found, in my adversity, so 
many persons ready to injure me by all sorts of 
means, and wrongfully ; for I have not, that I know 
of, ever done anything to deserve their displeasure. 
Yet, they are every day making some fresh report to 
you, in order to make you suspicious of, and angry 
with me, even at the moment when I am most anx- 
ious to avoid the least occasion of giving you offence. 
I state this, because, ever since you were pleased to 
send to me Mr. Wade, and other commissioners, who 
informed me of part of your anger against me, I have 
endeavored not to speak, to write, or even to think 
of anything that I could suppose likely to give you 
any cause whatever to be displeased with me. 

" Thus, when I heard of the loss of my Castle of 



312 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

Edinburgh, and other reverses, perceiving that peo- 
ple took pleasure in talking more about them than 
was necessary for comforting me, I flatly refused tc 
converse upon that subject, not wishing to make my 
misfortunes a pastime to any one, and not being able 
to remedy them; and also expressly not to furnish 
occasion to any one to put a malicious construction 
on my words; and yet you daily heard some false 
report concerning me, as I perceive from the letters 
of De la Mothe Fenelon, ambassador of the King, my 
good brother. But if you would have the kindness 
to reserve an ear for me, before condemning me on 
the faith of those who, by such reports, strive to in- 
cense you against me, you would soon find that they 
have no other foundation for their statements than a 
malicious desire to injure me. 

" You have been informed that I had attempted to 
bribe your subjects with my money ; but if you will 
please to inquire, you will find it a mere supposition, 
and that, as I have already remarked, in writing to 
the said Sr. de la Mothe Fenelon, I have too many 
urgent calls upon the income I receive, to be able 
to bring more money hither than what is absolutely 
necessary to pay my servants, and provide for my 
wants. If it had been agreeable to you, you might 
have seen this from the account which I have kept 
of my moneys, of which I have reserved but a very 
small sum for the above purpose. 

" For the rest, it appears unfortunate for my af- 
fairs that I have gained so many friends, seeing the ill 
turns that are done me on all sides; and, though it is 
asserted that I complain of being watched too closely, 
and that I am, nevertheless, continually gaining per- 






MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 313 

sons to my side, I assure you, madam, that I neither 
see nor speak to any creature in the world, with the 
exception of those under whose charge you have 
placed me, and that with as much reserve as possible ; 
for, as for any complaint or remonstrance that I have 
made to them, God knows that they have not obliged 
my by any remedy they have applied ; and even when 
they have granted me anything, at the request of the 
said Sr. de la Mothe Fenelon, it has always been so 
thwarted that I have been no better for it. I do not 
say this to complain of any one, for I have learned to 
suffer, since it is your pleasure, and I shall never at- 
tribute to any but you the good or evil that befalls 
me in this country, having come and placed myself 
in your hands, as being my surest refuge, for the 
honor I have to be your nearest kinswoman and neigh- 
bor, and have no right to do otherwise than you com- 
mand ; and I should be very simple, having lived so 
long in trouble, if I did or said, in any house in Eng- 
land, what I wished not to be referred to you and to 
your council, were my affection other than it is to- 
ward you, seeing that I have access to none but those 
whom I know to be charged to watch me. I suf- 
fered too severely at Bourton — recollect, if you 
please, the charity that was done me there — not to 
be on my guard elsewhere, though I may not appear 
to be so. 

" But to conclude, I feel my conscience so clear, 
that whatever reports may be made of my actions, 
provided people only adhere to the truth, I will give 
you no cause to be dissatisfied with me, and I there- 
fore beseech you not to believe anything that may be 
told you to the contrary ; for, I assure you, that I have 



314 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

neither written nor said more than I have said to your 
commissioners, or written to yourself, and in proof 
of my innocence in something, if you should be 
pleased to adopt some good expedient, that with your 
favor I might go to France or Scotland, things being 
by you reestablished for my honor and safety, you 
will find that I should feel myself greatly obliged to 
you, and I will gladly prepare to quit this country, 
that I may manifest elsewhere, when at liberty, my 
affection to you, which people strive to disguise from 
you, to deprive me of the opportunity of defending 
myself in your presence, in which the others have 
time and place to accuse me. Be this as it may, I 
beseech you in future to believe nothing concerning 
me, and not to credit or hearken to anything against 
me, but what you have sufficient proof of; for I de- 
sire nothing more than to do what is agreeable to you, 
if you will be pleased to grant me the means, and 
permit me to have access to you, that I may lay be- 
fore you my grievances ; for, till that moment, I shall 
experience nothing but crosses: and fearing that I 
have already fatigued you by this long letter, I will 
send the rest of my remonstrances to Monsieur de la 
Mothe Fenelon, and present my humble recommenda- 
tions to your good favor, praying God to grant you, 
madam, good health and a long and very happy life. 
From the Castle of Chffeild, the 20 February, 1574. 
" Your very affectionate and good sister and cousin, 

" Maby R" 

Elizabeth, in return, allowed her to extend her 
walks into the park and gardens of Sheffield. The 
humid air of her prison had induced rheumatism in 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 315 

her arms, and she was wasted with a liver-complaint, 
whose symptoms were aggravated by her incarcera- 
tion. According to her request, she was therefore 
permitted to visit the baths of Buxton, not far from 
Sheffield ; where she relinquished conspiracies and 
dangerous correspondence, for harmless amusements. 
She wrote to the Archbishop of Glasgow two or three 
letters, which display her business forethought and 
new employments : 

THE QUEEN OF SCOTS TO THE ARCHBISHOP OF GLAS- 
GOW. 

" May, 1574. 
" Monsieur de Glascow — None of my subjects or 
servants has a greater dislike to enter into disputes 
than myself; yet I would do so both with the one and 
the other, when I love them and wish to make use of 
them, communicating my will and what I think it 
necessary for them to know, in order to dispose them 
to fulfill it voluntarily ; on the other hand, as far as 
lies in my power, and I see that it is reasonable, I 
shall have great pleasure in gratifying them when 
they solicit emolument, honor, and advancement of 
me. As I perceive from your letters that you are 
mistaken in regard to my last, which you think too 
harsh, this makes me write to you in the style of a 
mistress, purposely that you may not doubt that all 
they contained was according to my command ; for I 
never write letters that others dictate. They may, 
indeed, prepare them, but I look over and correct 
them if they convey not my meaning, before I sign 
them. You cannot harbor this doubt in the present 



316 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

instance, for my secretary is so ill that I am obliged 
to write all my dispatches, with my own hand; but I 
am of the same opinion as he who writes for you, 
whom you will command to write in milder terms an- 
other time, for I do not wish to be compelled to write 
to you otherwise than as befitting so faithful a sub- 
ject, and a minister diligent and zealous in obeying 
the commands of a good mistress, and to remove all 
occasion for doubt or ignorance, or discontent, which 
I suspect some persons are striving to put into your 
head, knowing that I would not take the same trouble 
to satisfy them as for you, whose services are so val- 
uable to me. 

I will tell you what both your brothers told me 
to write to you, and I assure you, without meaning to 
offend you — that you may believe this on the word 
of her whose testimony alone ought to be positive 
proof — I have still some of your letters which I re- 
ceived at Winkfield and other places, in which you 
informed me that M. the cardinal had placed the seals 
in your hands until I should appoint a chancellor, 
and that you would use such authority in the best 
manner you possibly could to my advantage, hoping 
that, whoever succeeded you, he would find his road 
already marked out. You, at the same time, recom- 
mended to me a brother-in-law, or some other rela- 
tion of the treasurer's, and Duvergier. I appointed 
Duvergier on this condition ; that he should reside in 
Paris, and come over here to receive my orders ; for I 
should have been vexed had it been given to any one 
without my knowledge, as I formerly wrote to you. 
In short, you never expressed a wish to me to keep 
the seals for any time, or led me to suppose you would 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 3J 7 

feel gratified by having them given to you; and 
surely, during the two years which elapsed between 
my gift, or at least the promise by letter written with 
my own hand to Duvergier, and his entering into of- 
fice, you had sufficient time to let me know if you 
wished for the appointment or not ; for I assure you 
that I should have preferred you, had you frankly 
asked me for it; but naturally supposing that you 
would have expressed your wish to that effect, if you 
had formed any, I did, as I always told you it was 
my intention to do, appoint a chancellor, and I am 
sorry you should have so long deferred informing me 
of your dissatisfaction, for which there is no remedy. 
" As to what you tell me that I am censured for it, 
inform me who and what, for it is your duty, and not 
to suffer anything to be said in your presence out of 
pique or caprice against me, and I will let them know 
what I think of it. They are not very discreet who 
wilfully intermeddle, and try to sow discord between 
an old experienced minister and his mistress, who 
ought to understand matters better than they do, 
clever as they conceive themselves to be. Tell them 
that, whenever I shall look after them, their bad con- 
duct will be discovered ; that you will be the first to 
expose it, and then each must answer for himself. 
As for yourself, you say that you have no fear of be- 
ing made a slave, but are determined to follow my di- 
rections in everything, by which you shall not lose 
either profit, honor, or advancement; for you shall 
be preferred to every one whatsoever ; and in future, 
whenever you have any desire for an appointment or 
other favor, be not afraid to let me know it, for 
neither you nor any other person shall ever have any- 



318 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

thing in my gift but from myself, if I can help it; 
but, if you are presented with anything from another 
quarter, as I have so often solicited, I shall consider 
myself greatly obliged. As far as I can see, the ap- 
pointment would only have annoyed you, for you 
would have gained nothing but ill-will, if you had 
said absolutely that you would follow my instruc- 
tions as punctually as I wish; for people over there 
like to do only just what they please. If I could but 
speak to you, I would soon remove any unpleasant 
impression by explaining the cause of my dissatisfac- 
tion, which in no way concerns you ; nor in my choice 
of chancellor has any person a right to find fault with 
me, or to accuse me of monopoly, as you say; but I 
hate those whom persons over there would wish to ap- 
point, though no one was officious enough to propose 
or to persuade me otherwise than what I have already 
written to you, which I shall not repeat — and this is 
the truth. 

" I have been informed that, as soon as the news 
was known that Duvergier had a passport to come to 
me, it was said in your lodging that Roullet had ob- 
tained it from him ; wherein he was unjustly sus- 
pected, for the poor fellow never opened his mouth to 
speak to me concerning it, and would have been glad 
to make the journey himself, if possible, feeling him- 
self already attacked by that disorder which has since 
reduced him to his present state. In short, it was my 
own act and deed ; but as he is so odious to you, that 
you have refused to introduce him, as I requested, I 
will not urge you further. At all events, he will not 
fail to side with you as I have commanded him, and 
to take your advice whenever you choose to give it, 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 319 

I never intended that he should be either your su- 
perior or equal in the council, where, in the absence 
of my uncle, the Cardinal of Lorraine, you, as my 
representative, hold the first place, and where you 
are invested with authority to see to it that my affairs 
are conducted according to my orders, which I am 
certain you will implicitly follow, by way of setting 
a good example, more especially as you are my nat- 
ural subject. I beg, therefore, that henceforth I may 
not again see any expressions in your letters which 
savor of dispute and altercation, nor hear any more 
about the dissatisfaction and disgust which prevent 
you from fulfilling the duties that you are charged 
with, as my present situation requires. For the rest, 
if there are any who murmur at my orders, tell them 
that at the present moment, what I most desire in my 
affairs is, to know those who are disposed to obey me, 
that I may employ them, with the assured intention 
of rewarding them ; and those who would fain man- 
age my affairs according to their own fancy, that they 
must change their conduct, or I shall persuade myself 
that it is not so much for my interest as for their own, 
that they wish to serve me. I want to see if, because 
I am absent or in prison, my orders are to be slighted 
or not, and I am willing to listen to the opinions of 
each, in order to follow the best counsel, which God 
will give me grace to discern ; but wherever I find 
any confederacy formed to counteract my intentions, 
I shall hold as suspicious all those who belong to it, 
and only employ such as pursue a different course. 

" I have made a declaration of my intentions, in 
answer to the replies made me to the instructions and 
estimates which I gave to my chancellor. I send it 



320 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

you for the purpose of showing and making it known, 
as herein expressed ; this I beg you to do, and to con- 
form to my wish, which, if I could communicate to 
you in any other way than openly, you would approve 
of it, and be convinced, as I before told you, that 
nothing was done with the intention of disparaging 
your faithful and agreeable services. I would most 
willingly have sought to procure permission for you 
to come over, had I not proof that it would be de- 
nied me, and were not all my requests viewed with 
more and more suspicion. I will, however, do all I 
can, and I beg you will do the same on your part. 
As for the money which you delivered to the English 
ambassador, take care and make him return it, and 
never again place any more in his hands, nor any- 
thing else, for they will not be answerable for any- 
thing. If my servants are urgent for their wages, I 
shall be reduced to great straits. I shall soon send a 
memorandum of those I wish to be paid, the same as 
they were entered in my estimate. Look to this, and 
take care that the assignations, which I sent by Du- 
vergier, for wages and gifts to my servants here with 
me, be immediately dispatched by the treasurer be- 
fore anything else ; for until this be done, I will not 
either give to or recompense any other, excepting the 
person to whom the Bishop of Ross lent a hundred 
crowns. I am very sorry that they have not been bet- 
ter satisfied, and without my knowledge. If you do 
anything for them, I will most willingly allow for it, 
rather than remain indebted to them as I am. I 
recommend also to you, old Curie; he is an old and 
faithful servant, and his son is faithful and diligent 
in my service. I have assigned him some money, to 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 321 

be employed in the way that he knows of. See to it 
that he is promptly paid; and, if opportunity offers 
of providing for any of his children, you will do me 
a great kindness by seeking the means. But that I 
may have an answer to this dispatch how my servants 
will be paid, I will send a list of those whom I wish 
to be paid first in France, among whom I shall not 
forget your servants, particularly the good old man 
Warkar, whom I have known for a very long time. 
My ecuyer de cuisine [head cook] ; notwithstanding 
all the orders I had given him, has not been able to 
get any money. I beg you, more especially as I have 
recommended, for my own safety, to be cautious in 
regard to my victuals, to let this be immediately set- 
tled ; and tell Hoteman to receive his wages, and keep 
them for my sake ; and speak to Cheminon, and in- 
quire if there be any means of assisting him to re- 
cover part of his money, which was received but 
mismanaged, otherwise it will be necessary for him 
to go over himself, which he has already asked leave 
of me to do ; and I assure you I should miss him very 
much. I am not out of danger if my food is not 
closely watched, and he is the only person here who 
has the care of it ; besides, as I have no apothecary, 
he makes up all the medicines for me and my house- 
hold ; and I have not been very ill since last Lent, 
when I suffered a good deal from the cold and want 
of exercise. 

" Roullet has sent me a letter from Monsieur de 
Flavigny, which I have read ; but, as the said Roullet 
cannot answer him, I beg you to make my recom- 
mendations to him, and to assure him that if ever I 
have the luck to recover my liberty, I shall remind 

21 



322 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

him of his promise to be a courtier, at least in my 
company, where he will always be wished for and wel- 
come, as his virtues and amiable disposition deserve. 
I recommend to you my two orphans, Annibal and 
William Douglas, as you would wish me to do for 
those in whom you are interested. I am writing for 
some articles which I want; order them to be for- 
warded to me as soon as possible, and money for 
my household. I am also writing to monsieur, my 
brother-in-law; to the Queens mesdames, my good 
mother and my sister ; to Monsieur le Due, and Mon- 
sieur de Montmorency; deliver my letters to them, 
and speak to them in behalf of Adam Gordon, to ob- 
tain for him the place of captain in the Scotch 
guards, M. de Losse being promoted to a higher situa- 
tion. You are aware how highly this would gratify 
me. I beg you also to recommend to them Lord 
Walhton, and render him all the service you can. In 
short, I beg you to solicit, wherever you can, for the 
good treatment of all my faithful subjects and ser- 
vants in France. If I had the means, I would not 
importune the King to aid them ; but having none, I 
cannot have recourse to any but him, in virtue of the 
ancient alliance between our countries, and the honor 
I have of being his sister. I beg, also, that in all 
changes and new edicts, you will not be afraid to 
require that there be nothing prejudicial to my 
dowry, as in the case of those tabellionages [the busi- 
ness of a tabellion, or village notary], and solicit the 
aid and favor of M. the Cardinal of Bourbon, of 
Montpensier, and of M. de Montmorency, to whom I 
wish you to address yourself as familiarly as to one 
of my relations, wherever you shall need counsel and 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 323 

favor, to aid you in remonstrating about rny affairs 
in that quarter. I will pray God to give you, Mon- 
sieur de Glascow, health, and a long and happy life. 

" Your verv good mistress and friend, 

" Mary K." 

" I beg you to send me some genuine terra sigil- 
lata* if it is to be had for money ; if not, ask M. the 
cardinal, my uncle, for some ; or, if he has none, 
rather than have recourse to the Queen, my mother- 
in-law, or to the King, a bit of fine unicorn's horn, as 
I am in great want of it.f 

" From what I have heard, you have misunder- 
stood what I wrote to you, for I never said that your 
brothers had specially solicited me to take the seals 
from you, but that I would permit you to retire alto- 
gether, which I refused ; and, taking of the seals, they 
always denied that it was a thing from which you 
derived much profit. Your brother writes to you as 
if he had been accused of having done you some ill 
turn. I assure you, and can testify, that he never 
thought such a thing; but he and your deceased 
brother expressed themselves to me in the terms 
above-mentioned ; and about this you may satisfy 
yourself without letting La Landouse and such like, 
interfere in correcting the Magnificat. I will in- 
form you particularly of every thing. What I here 
tell vou, is enough to satisfv vou that I have done 

* The terra sigillata was a seal made of pottery or earthen- 
ware. Mary evidentl}' wanted this as an amulet or charm. 

f The superstitious notions of those days attributed, we 
presume, extraordinary virtues to the imaginary as well as to 
the real substances for which the Queen writes in this post- 
script. 



324 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

nothing to cause you displeasure; but I am not 
pleased with those lawsuits, carried on where every 
one must be a judge, and in the end I shall grow 
angry with them, which is what I have no wish to 
do. Duvergier had my letters before I had let you 
know that I had given him them ; he will show them 
to you." 

THE QUEEJtf OF SCOTS TO QUEEN" ELIZABETH. 

"June 9th, [1574.] 
" Madam, my good sister — as you have been 
pleased to intimate to Monsieur de la Mothe Fenelon, 
ambassador of the King, monsieur my good brother, 
that you were gratified by the liberty which I took to 
present to you, through him, a trifling piece of my 
work, I cannot refrain from assuring you, by these 
lines, how happy I should esteem myself, if you 
would be pleased to permit me to make it my duty to 
recover by any means whatever, some portion of your 
good graces, in which I most earnestly wish you to be 
pleased to aid me by some intimation in what way 
you think I can gratify and obey you ; whenever it is 
your pleasure, I shall always be ready to give you 
proofs of the honor and friendship I bear you. I was 
very glad that you were pleased to accept the sweet- 
meats which the said Sieur de la Mothe presented to 
you ; I am now writing to Duvergier, my chancellor, 
to send me a better supply, which you will do me a 
favor in making use of ; and would to God that you 
would accept my services in more important things, 
in which I should show such readiness to please, that, 
in a short time, you would have a better opinion of 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 325 

me ; in the meantime, I will wait patiently for some 
favorable news from you, which I have been expect- 
ing for such a long time. And that I may not be 
troublesome, I will communicate what I have further 
to say through Monsieur de la Mothe, being assured 
thait you will not credit him less than myself; and 
having kissed your hands, I pray God to grant you, 
madam, my good sister, health, and a long and happy 
life. From Sheffield, this ixth of June. 

" Your very affectionate sister and cousin, 

" Maey R." 

THE QUEEN OF SCOTS TO THE ARCHBISHOP OF GLAS- 
GOW. 

" From Sheffield, the 9th of July, [1574.] 
" Monsieur de Glascow — I have nothing particular 
to say at present, except that, thank God, I am in bet- 
ter health than I was before using the baths, and 
when I last wrote you. I beg you will procure for 
me some turtle doves, and some Barbary fowls. I 
wish to try if I can rear them in this country, as your 
brother told me that, when he was with you, he had 
raised some in a cage, as also some red partridges ; 
and send me, by the person who brings them to Lon- 
don, instructions how to manage them. I shall tako 
great pleasure in rearing them in cages, which I do 
all sorts of little birds I can meet with. This will be 
amusement for a prisoner,, particularly since there are 
none in this country, as I wrote to you not long ago. 
Pray see to it, that my directions be complied with, 
and I will pray God to have you in his keeping. 
" Your very good mistress and friend, 

" Maey R." 



326 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

THE QUEEN OF SCOTS TO THE SAME. 

" From Sheffield, the 18th July, [1574.] 
" Monsieur de Glascow — M. de la Mothe Fenelon, 
ambassador of the King, monsieur, my brother, hav- 
ing given me the mournful intelligence of the decease 
of the said prince,* whom God absolve, you may 
imagine the grief I felt for the loss of so good a 
brother and friend ; and if I had sooner had the 
means, I should have commanded you to go to visit 
and condole, in my name, with the Queen-madam, my 
good mother, and with the Queens, my good sisters, 
which I am sure you have not failed to do, so well 
knowing my intentions; and having since heard 
lately, from the said M. de la Mothe Fenelon, that 
there are hopes at present, of the return of the King, 
monsieur, my good brother, to his kingdom, I would 
not omit writing this letter, which I shall desire him 
to send you, for the purpose of informing you of my 
intention, which is that, on his arrival, you go to 
meet and receive him, performing, in my name, such 
offices as are required of a good sister and ally, de- 
liver the letters which I have written to him, and as- 
suring him of the good will which you know I have 
always borne, both toward the late King and himself ; 
and, if you have opportunity, recommend me and my 
affairs to him, and to the Queen, my good mother, 
also, to whom I am now writing, as also to the Queen, 
mv ffood sister, and to MM., my uncles. 

" As for my health, it is, thank God, rather better 
than before I went to the baths. I have written more 
particularly to the said Sieur de la Mothe, who, T am 
* Charles IX., who <\k<\ the 31st of May, 1574, 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 327 

sure, will have apprized them of it. For the rest, I 
beg you to take care to get me an ample reply to my 
dispatch of the 8th of May, and that the memorials 
which I sent them, and since, be dispatched, and the 
substance sent to M. de la Mothe, to be forwarded to 
me. If it please the Queen of England, madam my 
good sister, to permit you, I should be glad if you 
would soon send some one to pay my household, and, 
at the same time, let me know, in reply, what you 
have to say about such of my affairs as remain to be 
settled, and to assist me in remodeling my estimates ; 
for, as for Eoullet, he has been twice on the point of 
death within the last fortnight, and it will be a long 
time before he can assist me again, if he should re- 
cover, of which I see no great likelihood, being de- 
cidedly consumptive, or I am much mistaken, for he 
has a continual wheezing, and is quite bent. Still, 
he says he is very well, and even within the last two 
days, told me he was sure he should get better. At 
any rate, it would be well if M. the cardinal, my 
uncle, would provide a person to take his place, his 
health being very precarious, and the least thing 
causes a relapse; and let me know his name, and as 
much as you can of his disposition ; for it is necessary 
to have patient and peaceable persons among prison- 
ers, who have not all the comforts they wish ; and, 
above all, he must not be partial in his service, other- 
wise it would occasion me more trouble than ease, and 
have no need of that, having had enough of it already. 
" If, in traveling to meet the King, or, for other ex- 
penses connected with this matter, you have need of 
some consideration, I should be glad if M., the cardi- 
nal, would allow something extra, only apprising me 



328 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

of it. I shall approve of it, for I know you are fre- 
quently in need of aid, and have no desire that you 
should remain behindhand, any more than get on too 
fast. On the first opportunity, I will recommend 
you to the King, and renew my former request for 
you ; meanwhile, be careful that all my affairs are 
conducted according to my orders. 

" Should you be permitted to send me some one 
with my accounts, send me, by-and-by, Jean de Com- 
peigne, and let him bring me patterns of dresses, and 
of cloth of gold and silver, and of silks, the handsom- 
est and the rarest that are worn at court, in order to 
learn my pleasure about them. Order Poissy to 
make me a couple of head-dresses, with a crown of 
gold and silver, such as were formerly made for me ; 
and Bretan to remember his promise, and to procure 
for me from Italy some new fashions of head-dresses, 
veils, and ribbons with gold and silver, and I will re- 
imburse him for whatever these may cost him. 

" You must not forget the birds, about which I 
lately wrote to you, and communicate the contents of 
this letter to messieurs, my uncles, and beg them to 
let me have a share of the new things which fall to 
them, as they do by my cousins ; for, though I do 
not wear such myself, they will be put to a better 
purpose. And to conclude, I will pray God to grant 
you, M. de Glascow, a long and happy life. 

" You must not fail to call, in my name, on M. 
and Madame de Lorraine, and apologize for my not 
writing to them at present, for want of leisure. I do 
not doubt that they will act towards me as a kind 
brother and sister, having been brought up with them 
from my youth, and being one of their house. Do 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 329 

the same by my good sister, the Queen of Navarre, 
and remember me to all my relations and friends; 
but more especially to my uncle, Monsieur the Car- 
dinal de Bourbon, and to my brother, the grand prior, 
to whom I have not time to write at present, so he 
never writes to me but for payment, and on behalf of 
his servants, at least, it is a long time since he did. 
Remember me, likewise, to M. and Madame de Vau- 
demont, and M. and Madame de Nemours, and De 
Nevers, and do not forget my cousin Du Maine, and 
his brother. 

" Serves de Conde, an old and faithful servant, has 
complained to me of having been forgotten in the es- 
timates for some years. I desire that he and his wife 
be placed at the head of the list ; in the meantime, 
I have given him an order, which I beg you will see 
is paid him. Tell M. the Cardinal, to furnish him 
with money to go to Scotland to take an inventory of 
the furniture which was in his keeping there, and to 
bring a certificate of what is wanting, who has it, and 
on what account he delivered it to them, and likewise 
testimonials from M. and Madame de Huthed, Lady 
Ledington, and Lord Seton, to whom he may deliver 
all that he can recover ; and if I learn from you, on 
his return, that he has rendered a good account, and 
arranged matters well for the future, I will take such 
steps as, with your approbation, I may see fit, for 
keeping his son-in-law, or some other person there as 
may be found most convenient. 

" Your very kind friend and mistress, 

" Mary K." 

" Remember me to the Bishop of Ross — I have 
nothing to write to him about at present," 



330 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

When Mary learned that Elizabeth kindly accepted 
the gifts of her tasteful hand, she addressed her in a 
grateful mood : 

" Madam, my good sister, since it has pleased you 
to receive so graciously from Monsieur de la Mothe 
the little things which I took the liberty to send you 
by him, I cannot refrain from expressing to you how 
happy I shall feel, when it pleases you to allow me to 
endeavor, by all means, to regain some part of your 
favor, to do which I greatly desire you to have the 
goodness to aid me, by informing me of the matters 
in which I can please and obey you." 

She also wrote the French ambassador : "I feel 
the greatest satisfaction at the news you give me, that 
it has pleased the Queen, my good sister, to accept 
my tablets ; for I desire nothing so much as to be able 
always to please her, in the least as well as in the 
most important affairs, and I do this in the hope of 
recovering her favor, in the first place, and then I do 
not doubt of her goodness in all the rest. I am de- 
sirous to make her a head-dress as soon as I can, but I 
have so few women to assist me in delicate needle- 
work, that I have not been able to get it ready yet. 
If you think some articles of network would please 
her better than anything else, I will make them. 
Meanwhile, I beg you to get for me some gold lace 
ornamented with silver spangles, the best and most 
delicate that you can, and to send me six yards of it, 
and twenty yards of double lace, or else narrow good 
lace." 

Mary was subdued, and pity was the highest hom- 
age awarded the abject Queen. The troubler of mon- 
archs, — the beautiful conspirator, whose plots shook 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 331 

kingdoms, has stooped to play the milliner to her im- 
perious rival. 

The correspondence with the Archbishop of Glas- 
gow was filial and frank, when private. She wrote 
tenderly after the death of her secretary, Roullet : 

" From Sheffield, the 4th of September, 1574. 

" Monsieur de Glascow, it pleased God to take 
Roullet, my secretary, out of this wretched life into 
his glory, on the last day but one of August, at eight 
o'clock in the morning, and so suddenly, that when I 
sent to inquire after him, as was my custom every 
morning, he was breathing his last, so that he said 
nothing when dying, about what he had requested of 
me before. I have set down what he said, as nearly 
as I can recollect, in a letter to M. Ferrarius, and to 
Hoteman ; which you will ask to see, and solicit them 
to accept the duty he has bequeathed them, and let me 
know whether they will fulfill it. He has left me the 
five thousand francs, which I lately made him a pres- 
ent of, saying that he had sufficient to fufill his last 
wishes. You must inquire respecting this, and, if 
you find it to be so, withdraw the said sum from 
Hoteman, or from the treasurer, because one or the 
other has received it for him, and which you can re- 
tain until you hear my further intentions. Make 
diligent inquiry for some one to serve me as secretary, 
and send him to me as early as possible ; for I must 
not act any longer in this capacity, unless I wish to 
kill myself. 

" I beg you to inform my treasurer that I am dis- 
pleased, because my officers here, with the exception 
of one or two, are not paid according to the order I 



332 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

gave him ; and those whom he has paid, at least Du 
Cartel, my surgeon, tells me that he has reckoned the 
crown at sixty sous.* Inquire if that is the value 
of it, for, if he wrongs my servants to make a profit 
by them, I will not suffer it. He has had sufficient 
profit by holding their wages from them for so long a 
time after they were due, and in only paying those, 
whom he pleased ; though there was no need for it, 
because they compounded with him for one half, as 
Chateaudum was in the habit of doing with my offi- 
cers. Dolu wrote to me that he had paid all; but I 

see to the contrary: he has no for 

he confesses, himself, that he is in my debt. I beg 
you will show him that part of my letter which re- 
lates to him, or let him know that I am extremely 
displeased, as he shall find, if he does not endeavor 
to satisfy my poor servants who are about me, and 
those who are recommended to me. I beg you will 
see that nothing further be done contrary to my in- 
structions. Eoullet is dead ; they can no longer sus- 
pect that it is he who puts this into my head ; and, 
as for Duvergier, he never spoke to me about him ; 
but I insist that he and all others obey me and fol- 
low my orders, let them displease whom they will; 
and, as I am in expectation of your general dispatch, 
I will not say more at present, but desire you to beg 
the cardinal, my uncle, not to permit any more money 
to be spent in the suit with Secondat ; for I tell you 
plainly, that I will give it up, rather than lay out an- 
other farthing upon it, let my counsel think what 

* If the English crown is here meant, it was worth $1.12. 
The sou was worth about one cent. Mary's suspicions seem 
justified in this matter. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 333 

they please, unless they make it appear that there 
is a better prospect than I see at present. As far as 
I can learn, the six thousand francs are to be followed 
by more ; I set my face against it ; show this to my 
said uncle, that he may forbid them to proceed fur- 
ther without his consent. 

" I have received a letter from Saint Cheran, ap- 
plying for the situation of his brother, who is in 
Champagne. Tell him that, having seen the dis- 
patch, by-and-by, according as he behaves himself, 
if he treads in the steps of his brother, and relies on 
me only, I will willingly comply with his request, 
and take him into my service, for I insist that my offi- 
cers, especially those who are here with me, depend 
entirely upon me, and no other person. If any 
should urge my chancellor to do any act without first 
consulting me, I beg you will take care that he re- 
fuses, until my intention be known, for that was the 
principal reason why I took him, and that he should 
depend on none but me. In so doing, I beg, as you 
love me, to support him, for I am resolved to be 
obeyed. 

" For the rest, present my humble remembrances 
to the King, M. my good brother, and to the Queen, 
my good mother, and beg them to command that all 
privileges and things in my gift may be reserved for 
me, and not given away, as they have been for some 
years past, under the name of grants from the King. 
Remember me to Messrs., my uncles, to my cousins, 
and to all my kind relations and friends, and take 
care to send your dispatch by a trusty person, and 
furnished with a safe passport for what I want, as all 
the letters of Senlis were taken from him. After sin- 



334 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

cerely recommending myself to your remembrance, I 
pray God to have you in his holy and worthy keeping, 
" I beg you will desire my treasurer to pay the 
money as soon as possible to old Curie, for I fear that 
the assignment will be at a long date, and that he has 
great need of it for his poor motherless children. I 
recommend him to you. I have not leisure to reply 
to the requests of Walker, nor have I a creature to 
assist me ; tell them they shall not be forgotten, nor 
yet the young lady who was to have come with Ral- 
lay, who, perhaps, some day may be in my service. 
" Your very good mistress and friend, 

" Mary R." 

" Apprise M., the cardinal, that if any one speaks 
to him for the situation of maitre d'hotel, held by the 
late Esguilli, he must not promise it, for I intend to 
make alterations in my household, and to have this 
situation abolished, as I have, likewise, resolved to do 
in regard to many others, as they become vacant. T 
shall do the same with Roullet's pension, leaving only 
the wages of a secretary for another in his place, and 
I will not permit any persons to be placed over there 
on my list without my knowledge, or I shall strike 
them out. 

" Do not forget my humble remembrances to Mad- 
ame, my grandmother. Roullet has left letters which 
he wrote to you, without addressing them, to M. de 
Ross and to M. the cardinal, whom I ought to have 
mentioned first ; I shall reserve them for better op- 
portunity, as they are not important, being merely on 
the matter concerning which he conceived himself to 
be suspected over there. Remember me to M. de 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 335 

Ross, to whom I have not leisure to write at present." 

A few weeks after she expressed her interest in the 
trifles which beguiled her solitary hours, and com- 
mends a friend in France, to his regard : 

" Sheffield, the loth November, [1574.] 
" M. de Glascow — having received the sweetmeats 
by the hands of the bearer, the brother of my chan- 
cellor, Duvergier, I have thought it right to give you 
a line by him, merely to tell you that I am well, 
thank God, and waiting for my secretary, and if you 
do not make haste and send him, you will hear no 
more from me, for so much writing makes me ill. 
Till then, I shall not write to you about business ; 
but do not forget, as you are so often at Lyons, to send 
my little dogs. For the rest, Madame de Briante has 
returned into France, where she is likely to have a 
great deal to do, especially with her brother-in-law, 
respecting her dowry. If she has need of my inter- 
est with him, or with any other, or with those of the 
law, I beg you to do all in your power to assist her and 
to request M. the cardinal, my uncle, to do what he 
can for her in all her affairs ; and, if she needs let- 
ters of recommendation from him, or from anv of 
my relatives or kindred, you must procure them for 
her in my name, with leave of my said uncle ; so that, 
if she has occasion to solicit the settlement of her 
suits in Paris, he may, for my sake, accommodate her 
with apartments in some one of his houses, that may 
be most suitable. She is an excellent and virtuous 
lady, and an old servant of the late Queen, my 
mother, and of myself, and her daughter is daily ren- 



336 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

dering me most agreeable service. But you are so 
well acquainted with her merits and virtues, that I 
shall not make this letter any longer, unless to pray 
God, after recommending myself to your good graces, 
to grant you, M. de Glascow, health and a long and 
happy life. 

" Your very good friend and mistress, 

" Mary K." 

Henry III. ascended the throne of France, and the 
captive felt a rising hope in his reputed bravery and 
devotion to Popery. But he soon blasted the expecta- 
tion, by his characterless, undecided reign. Death 
robbed her, at this time, of a faithful ally. Tidings 
that Cardinal Lorraine was no more, reached the dis- 
consolate Queen, l^ot hearing immediately from the 
archbishop on the subject, she wrote him, complain- 
ing of neglect : 

" From Sheffield, 20th February, [1575.] 
" Monsieur de Glascow — I am much astonished 
that, on so melancholy event, I have neither received 
information nor consolation from you. I cannot at- 
tribute this to anything but the extreme sorrow you 
feel for the loss I have sustained : yet God be praised, 
if he sends me afflictions, he has, thus far, given me 
grace to support them. Though I cannot, at the first 
moment, command my feelings, or prevent the tears 
that will flow, yet my long adversity has taught me 
to hope for consolation for all my afflictions in a bet- 
ter life. Alas ! I am a prisoner, and God has bereft 
me of one of those persons whom I most loved ; what 
shall I say more ? He has bereft me, at one blow, of 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 337 

my father and my uncle; I shall now follow when- 
ever he pleases, with less regret; hut yet, instead of 
comforting me, do not distress yourself too much on 
my account, lest I might be deprived of a good and 
faithful servant, which, I feel assured, I have in 
you." 

Mary Stuart still looked, with faint anticipation of 
aid, to Philip II., and resumed correspondence re- 
specting an invasion of England. Her failing health 
and perils, drew forth the following singular and un- 
natural disposal of her son, quoted from a message 
to the Archbishop of Glasgow: 

" In order not to contravene the glory, honor, and 
preservation of the Catholic, Apostolic, and Roman 
church, in which I wish to live and die, if the prince 
of Scotland, my son, shall be brought back to its 
creed in spite of the bad education he has received, 
to my great regret, in the heresy of Calvin, among 
my rebellious subjects, I leave him the sole and only 
heir of my kingdom of Scotland, and of the right 
which I justly claim to the crown of England and its 
dependent countries; but if, on the other hand, my 
said son continues to live in the said heresy, I yield 
and transfer and present all my rights in England 
and elsewhere ... to the Catholic King, or any of 
his relations whom he may please, with the advice 
and consent of his Holiness ; and I do this, not only 
because I perceive him to be now the only true sup- 
porter of the Catholic religion, but also out of grati- 
tude for the many favors which I and my friends, 
recommended by me, have received from him in my 
22 



338 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

greatest necessity, and furthermore, out of respect to 
the rights which he may himself possess to the said 
kingdoms and countries. I beseech him, in return, 
to make alliance with the house of Lorraine, and, if 
possible, with that of Guise, in memory of the race 
from which I am sprung on my mother's side." 



A part of Mary's correspondence during the years 
79-80, will 
notonous life : 



1579-80, will afford a glance at her somewhat mo 



THE QUEEN OF SCOTS TO THE ARCHBISHOP OF GLAS- 
GOW. 

" June 24, 1579. 
" Mon's de Glascow — Owing to the absence of 
Xau, who set out a fortnight ago for Scotland, on a 
visit to my son, * and to my having been rather indis- 
posed — many thanks to Du Val, whom I expected 
here to physic (purgcr) me for this whole summer — 
I could not give an earlier answer to your last let- 
ters I shall therefore begin by requesting you to put 
the irons in the fire again, and try to find me another 
physician who is not a deceiver, and make Lusgeri 
do the same; and, meanwhile, give me your opinion 
of any who may offer themselves. I have ordered 
Duvergier, my chancellor, if he knows of any person, 

* "About this time. Mary sent by Nan, her secretary, a 
letter to her son, together with some jewels of value, and a 
vest, embroidered with her own hand. But, as she gave him 
only the title of Prince of Scotland, the messenger was dis- 
missed without being admitted into his presence.'' — Robert- 
son's Hist , of Scot. , b. vi. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 339 

to send him to you, so that you may speak to him, 
and be able to give me your opinion. I fear he will 
find work cut out for him, as I begin to be unwell, 
and am suffering from what I have not had for a long 
time — a very bad, dry cough. I am glad that you 
have gone to the baths for the benefit of your health, 
but am sorry that you could not be present, according 
to my desire, at the rendering of the accounts of Dclu, 
my treasurer. I hope soon to be able to inform you, 
whom I intend to appoint in his place. As to the 
affair of Madam de Humieres, you will do well to 
make inquiry about it, for I think it a sad thing that 
the fief should be so much diminished, since she her- 
self wrote to me, at her leisure, respecting it. Touch- 
ing the request of your secretary, I cannot, for sev- 
eral reasons, comply with it at present. I beg you, 
on your return to give me a full account of the state 
of my affairs, and to look well after them ; and, in re- 
turn, I hope to be able, on the arrival of Nau, to in- 
form you of that of your old mistress and your young 
master. So the latter be but satisfactory, the former 
cannot be otherwise. And, in this place, after heart- 
ily commending myself to you, I pray God to give 
you, M. de Glascow, a long and happy life. 

" Your very good mistress and best friend, 

" Mary K." 

THE QUEEN OF SCOTS TO THE ARCHBISHOP OF GLAS- 
GOW. 

" Buxton, August 10, 1579. 
" Monsieur de Glascow — As the indisposition of 
Nau prevents me from giving you a detailed answer 



340 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

to your preceding letters, I write in the meantime to 
inform you of my arrival at the baths, and of the 
benefit I have derived from them in relieving the in- 
veterate pain in my side. As ill luck would have it, 
at Sheffield, those who were assisting me to mount 
my horse, let me fall backward on the steps of the 
door, from which I received so violent a blow on the 
spine of the back, that, for some days past, I have 
not been able to hold myself upright. I hope', how- 
ever, with the good remedies which I have employed, 
to be quite well before I leave this place. We have 
not been wholly free from the epidemic disorder ; but 
it has been much more violent among the people of 
the country than those of my household, not one of 
which is now, thank God, affected by it. 

" Do not fail to send me all the things which I di- 
rected you, notwithstanding the danger that you tell 
me you apprehended on your side of the water, and 
which is not less here, and write to me on all occa- 
sions, according to the opportunity you have. 
Whereupon, I pray God to have you, M. de Glascow, 
in his holy keeping. 

" Your very good mistress and best friend, 

" Mary K." 

THE QUEEN OF SCOTS TO M. DE MAUVISSIERE. 

" Monsieur de Mauvissiere — Having purchased 
two beautiful rare nags for my cousin, Monsieur de 
Guise, it was my intention to have immediately sent 
them both in charge of the bearer, who is obliged to 
return to France with his wife, for the cure of a dis- 
order with which she has been afflicted ever since last 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 341 

winter. But one of the said horses having been ail- 
ing (forbeu) for the last seven or eight days, I 
thought it advisable not to miss this opportunity, nor 
the season, for sending the other, which I have given 
in charge to the groom, who has for some time past 
had it under his particular care, and I have given him 
strict orders to take it to your house ; and you will 
oblige me to let it be led by one of your grooms, to my 
ambassador, in order that he may present it, in my 
name, to my said cousin, and to pay my expenses in- 
curred. I think you will have no difficulty about his 
journey, with the passport which it will be necessary 
to obtain for the purpose, any more than for that of 
any of my said officers ; I shall, therefore, not give 
you any more particular directions on the subject, 
praying God, Monsieur de Mauvissiere,to have you in 
his holy and worthy care. Written at the manor of 
Sheffield, the iii. day of September, 1580 c 

" Your very obliging and best friend, 

" Mary K." 

Morton, Regent of Scotland, had for five years 
ruled wisely over the realm. Commerce prospered 
in the universal peace, and the transforming progress 
in every branch of national prosperity, was the theme 
of eulogy with foreign ambassadors. The fruits of 
a Protestant reign were benign and happy. But the 
restless nobles demanded his resignation, and the in- 
vestment of James VI., then thirteen years of age, 
with full authority. After, great reverses of fortune 
within a short period, Morton was condemned to the 
scaffold, June 2d, 1581, on the charge of complicity 
in the murder of Darnley. He confessed his knowl- 



342 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

edge of the conspiracy, but denied any connection 
with it, not daring, he affirmed, to reveal it, because 
the Queen approved the regicide. He died with un- 
faltering firmness and resignation. Mary heard with 
unfeigned satisfaction of the execution of an enemy, 
whose death was favorable to her aspirations. 

Mary had refused to give James VI. the title of 
King, and when her messenger, Nau, presented him- 
self with maternal gifts, the youthful prince denied 
him audience, because his mother had omitted the 
royal address. 

A new scheme was proposed of association in the 
crown. The conditions were, the resignation of the 
sceptre to Mary, and her restoration of it again to her 
son. The management of the affair was committed 
to the Duke of Guise. It was another Catholic de- 
vice, similar to that of 1570. Earl of Lennox, for 

merly Stuart, a Catholic favorite of James, held 

a commanding influence, and secretly used it to 
weaken the strength of the Presbyterian church. 
Preparatory to his ultimate plans, he reestablished 
the Episcopal church for the benefit of the Protes- 
tant nobility. The English ambassador at Edinburgh 
disclosed to the nobles who were faithful to the Refor- 
mation, the negotiations in progress, and the danger 
to their religion and lives, if the project of associa- 
tion in the crown succeeded. The result was another 
formidable confederation to put down Lennox, defeat 
the designs of the Queen, and guard the Protestant 
faith. Lennox moved fearlessly forward ; but intelli- 
gence reaching the confederates of his incautious 
haste, they resolved to strike a blow without delay. 
The King was enjoying the chase near Perth. The 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 343 

Earl of Gourie invited bim to his castle at Ruthven, 
when suddenly it was environed with a thousand men. 
The captive wept and expostulated in vain; he was 
carried to the fortress of Stirling Castle. Lennox, 
after attempting to intrench himself at Edinburgh, 
retired into France, where he soon died. 

This disastrous experiment of Mary's friends, once 
more plunged her into the abyss of helplessness and 
despair; while Elizabeth was elated with the tri- 
umphs of her unshaken authority. In the extremity 
of her condition, she wrote a long and deeply inter- 
esting letter : 

THE QUEEN OF SCOTS TO QUEEN ELIZABETH.* 

"Madam — Upon that which has come to my knowl- 
edge of the last conspiracies executed in Scotland 
against my poor child, having reason to fear the con- 
sequences of it, from the example of myself, I must 
employ the very small remainder of my life and 
strength before my death, to discharge my heart to 

* Blackwood, whose history of the sufferings of Mary was 
published so early as 1587, says : The Queen at the reported 
seizure of her son by Lord Gowry, having received an intima- 
tion of her son's captivity, fell so sick that she thought she 
should die, as the English physicians reported she would to 
their mistress, who wanted nothing better, having the son 
already in his power, or, which was the same, in the hands 
of the people who were devoted to her ; with which the poor 
mother, being greatly agitated in her mind, after she had ad- 
dressed her prayers to God, put her hand to the pen, thinking 
to obtain favor from, and to soften the heart of, her cousin 
by this address." The French original of this " celebrated 
letter." as Chalmers calls it, is in the British Museum, Cotton 
lib. Calig. c. vii. 51. 



344 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

you fully of my just and melancholy complaints ; of 
which I desire that this letter may serve you as long 
as you live after me, for a perpetual testimony and 
engraving upon your conscience, as much for my dis- 
1 large to posterity, as to the shame and confusion of 
all those who, under your approbation, have so cruelly 
and unworthily treated me to this time, and reduced 
me to the extremity in which I am. But as tib 
designs, practices, actions, and proceedings;, 1 
as detestable as they could have been, have always 
prevailed with you against my very jus on- 

strances and sincere deportment ; and as the po 
which you have in your hands, has always been a 
reason for you among mankind; I will have reco 1 . 
to the living God, our only judge, who has esti 
lished us equally and immediately under him, for 
the government of his people. 

" I will invoke him, till the end of this, my very 
pressing affliction, that he will return to you and to 
me (as he will do in his last judgment,) the share of 
our merits and demerits one toward the other. And 
remember, madam, that to him we shall not be able 
to disguise anything by the point and policy of the 
world ; though mine enemies, under you, have been 
able, for a time, to cover their subtle inventions to 
men, perhaps to you. 

" In his name, and before him sitting between you 
and me, I will remind you that, by the agents, spies, 
and secret r. ^ssengers, sent in your name to Scotland 
while I was ftiere, my subjects were encouraged to 
rebel against me, to make attempts upon my person 
and, in a word, to speak, do, enterprise, and execm- 
that which has come to the said country during my 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 345 

troubles; of which I will not, at present, specify 
other proof than that which I have gained of it by the 
confession of one who was afterward among those 
that were most advanced for this good service, and 
of the witnesses confronted with him. To whom, if 
I had since done justice, he had not afterward, by his 
ancient intelligences, renewed the same practices 
against my son, and had not procured for all my trai- 
torous and rebellious subjects who took refuge with 
you, that aid and support which they have had, even 
since my detention on this side; without which sup- 
port I think the said traitors could not since have 
prevailed, nor afterward have stood out so long as 
they have done. 

" During my imprisonment at Lochleven, the late 
Trogmarton [Throckmorton] counseled me on your 
behalf to sign that demission which he advertised me 
would be presented to me, assuring me that it would 
not be valid. And there was not afterward a place 
in Christendom, where it was held for valid or main- 
tained, except on this side, [where it was maintained] 
even to having assisted with open force, the authors 
of it. In your conscience, madam, would you ac- 
knowledge an equal liberty and power in your sub- 
jects ? Notwithstanding this, my authority has been 
by my subjects transferred to my son, when he was 
not capable of exercising it. 

" And since I was willing to assure it lawfully to 
him, he being of age to be assisted to his own advan- 
tage, it is suddenly ravished from him, and assigned 
over to two or three traitors ; who, having taken from 
him the effectiveness of it, will take from him as 
they have from me, both the name and the title of it, 



346 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

if he contradicts them in the manner he may, and 
perhaps his life, if God does not provide for his pres- 
ervation. 

" When I was escaped from Lochleven, ready to 
give battle to my rebels, I remitted to you, by a gen- 
tleman express, a diamond jewel, which I had for- 
merly received as a token from you, and with assur- 
ance to be succored against my rebels, and even that, 
on my retiring toward you, you would come to the 
very frontiers in order to assist me ; which had been 
confirmed to me by divers messengers. 

" This promise, coming, and repeatedly, from your 
mouth, (though I had found myself often deceived by 
your ministers,) made me place such affiance on the 
effectiveness of it, that, when my army was routed, I 
had come directly to throw myself into your arms, if 
I had been able to approach them. But, while I was 
planning to set out, there was I arrested on my way, 
surrounded with guards, secured in strong places, and 
at last reduced, all shame set aside, to the captivity 
in which I remain to this day, after a thousand 
deaths, which I have already suffered from it. 

" I know that you will allege to me what passed 
between the late Duke [of] Norfolk and me. I 
maintain that there was nothing in this to your pre- 
judice or against the public good of this realm, and 
that the treaty was sanctioned with the advice and 
signatures of the first persons who were then of your 
council, under the assurance of making it appear good 
to you. How could such personages have under- 
taken the enterprise of making you consent to a point 
which should deprive you of life, of honor, and your 
crown, as you have shown yourself persuaded it would 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 347 

have done to all the ambassadors and others, who 
speak to you concerning me. 

" In the meantime, my rebels perceiving that their 
headlong course was carrying them much further 
than they had thought before, and the truth being 
evidenced concerning the calumnies that had been 
propagated of me at the conference to which I sub- 
mitted, in full assembly of your deputies and mine, 
with others of the contrary party in that country, in 
order to clear myself publicly of them ; there were the 
principals, for having come to repentance, besieged 
by your forces in the Castle of Edinburgh, and one 
of the first among them poisoned,* and the other most 
cruelly hanged ;f after I had twice made them lay 
down their arms at your request, in hopes of an 
agreement, which God knows whether my enemies 
aimed at. 

" I have been for a long time trying whether pa- 
tience could soften the rigor and ill-treatment which 
they have begun for these ten years peculiarly to 
make me suffer. And, accommodating myself exactly 
to the order prescribed me for my captivity in this 
house, as well in regard to the number and quality 
of the attendants which I retain, dismissing the 
others, as for my diet and ordinary exercises for my 
health, I am living at present as quietly and peac- 
ably as one much inferior to myself, and more obliged 
than with such treatment I was to you, had been able 
to do; even to the abstaining, in order to take from 
you all shadow of suspicion and diffidence, from re- 
quiring to have some intelligence with my son and 
my country, which is what by no right or reason could 
* Secretary Maitland, \ The Laird of Grange. 



348 MAHY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

be denied me, and particularly with my child ; whom, 
instead of this, they endeavored by every way to per- 
suade against me, in order to weaken us by our di- 
vision. 

" I was permitted, you will say, to send one to visit 
him there about three years ago. His captivity then 
at Stirling under the tyranny of Morton, was the 
cause of it, as his liberty was afterward of the refusal 
to make a like visit. All this year past I have sev- 
eral times entered into divers overtures for the estab- 
lishment of a good amity between us, and a sure 
understanding between these two realms in future. 
About ten years ago, commissioners were sent to me 
at Chatsworth for that purpose. A treaty has been 
held upon it with yourself, by my ambassadors and 
those of France. I even myself made last winter all 
the advantageous overtures concerning it to Beal, that 
it was possible to make. What return have I had 
from them % My good intention has been despised, 
the sincerity of my actions has been neglected and 
calumniated, the state of my affairs has been trav- 
ersed by delays, postponings, and other such like 
artifices. And, in conclusion, a worse and more un- 
worthy treatment from day to day, in spite of any- 
thing which I am obliged to do to deserve the country, 
and my very long, useless, and prejudicial patience, 
have reduced me so low, that mine enemies, in their 
habits of using me ill, now think they have the right 
of prescription for treating me, not as a prisoner, 
which in reason I could not be, but as a slave, whose 
life and whose death depend only upon their tyranny. 

"I cannot, madam, endure it any longer; and I 
must in dying discover the authors of my death, or 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 349 

living, attempt, under your protection, to find an end 
to the cruelties, calumnies, and traitorous designs of 
my said enemies, in order to establish me in some lit- 
tle more repose for the remainder of my life. To 
take away the occasions pretended for all the differ- 
ences between us, banish from your mind, if you 
please, all that has been reported to you concerning 
my actions ; review the depositions of the foreigners 
taken in Ireland ; let those of the Jesuits last executed 
be submitted to you; give liberty to those who would 

lertake to accuse me publicly, and permit me to 

_r upon my defence; if any evil be found in me, 
me suffer for it ; it shall be patiently, when I 
know the occasion of it ; if any good, allow me not to 
be worse treated for it, with your very high commis- 
sion before God and man. 

" The vilest criminals that are in your prisons, 
born under your obedience, are admitted to their jus- 
tification ; and their accusers and their accusations 
are always declared to them. Why, then, shall not 
the same order have place toward me, a sovereign 
Queen, your nearest relation and lawful heir ? I 
think that this last circumstance has hitherto been 
on the side of my enemies, the principal cause of all 
their calumnies, to make their unjust pretensions 
slide between the two, and keep us in division. But, 
alas ! they have now little reason and less need to tor- 
ment me more upon this account. For I protest to 
you, upon mine honor, that I look this day for no 
kingdom but that of my God, whom I see preparing 
me for the better conclusion of all my afflictions and 
adversities. 

" This will be to you [a monition] to discharge 



350 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

your conscience toward my child, as to what belongs 
to him on this point after my death; and, in the 
meantime, not to let prevail to his prejudice, the con- 
tinual practices and secret conspiracies which our 
enemies in this kingdom are making daily for the ad- 
vancement of their said pretensions ; laboring, on the 
other side, with our traitorous subjects in Scotland, 
by all the means which they can to hasten his ruin ; 
of which I desire no better verification than the 
charges given to your last deputies sent into Scotland, 
and what the said deputies have seditiously practiced 
there, as I believe, without your knowledge, but with 
good and sufficient solicitation of the earl, my good 
neighbor at York.* 

" And on this point, madam, by what right can it 
be maintained that I, the mother of my child, am to- 
tally prohibited not only from assisting him in the so 
urgent necessity in which he is, but also from having 
any intelligence of his state ? Who can bring him 
more carefulness, duty, and sincerity than I ? To 
whom can he be more near ? At the least, if, when 
sending to him to provide for his preservation, as the 
Earl of Cheresbury [Shrewsbury] gave me lately to 
understand that you did, you had been pleased to 
take my advice in the matter, you would have inter- 
posed with a better face, as I think, and with more 
obligingness to me. But consider what you leave me 
to think, when, forgetting so suddenly the offence 
which you pretended to have taken against my son, 
at the time I was requesting you that we should send 
together to him, you have dispatched one to the place 
where he was a prisoner, not only without giving me 

* The Earl of Huntingdon, then Lord President, at York, 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 351 

advice of it, but debarring me at the very time from 
all liberty, that by no way whatever I might have 
any news of him. 

" And if the intention of those who have procured 
on your part this so prompt visit to my son had been 
for his preservation and the repose of the country, 
they needed not to have been so careful to conceal it 
from me, as a matter in which I should not have been 
willing to concur with you. By this means they have 
lost you the good will which I should have had 
for you. And, to talk to you more plainly on the 
point, I pray you not to employ there any more such 
means or such persons. For, although I hold the Lord 
de Kerri [Gary, Lord Hundson] too sensible of the 
rank from which he is sprung, to engage his honor in 
a villainous act, yet he has had for an assistant a 
sworn partizan of the Earl of Huntingdon's, by whose 
bad offices an action as bad has nearly succeeded to a 
similar effect. I shall be contented, then, if you will 
only not permit my son to receive any injury from his 
country (which is all that I have ever required of you 
before, even when an army was sent to the borders, to 
prevent justice from being done to that detestable 
Morton,) nor any of your subjects to intermeddle any 
more, directly or indirectly, in the affairs of Scot- 
land, unless with my knowledge, to whom all cog- 
nizance of these things belongs, or with the assistance 
of some one on the part of the most Christian King, 
my good brother, whom, as our principal ally, I desire 
to make privy to the whole of this cause, notwith- 
standing the little influence that he can have with the 
traitors who detain my son at present. 

" In the meantime, I declare in all frankness to 



352 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

you, that I hold this last conspiracy and innovation 
as pure treason against the life of my son, the good 
of his affairs, and that of the country; and that, while 
he shall be in the state which I understand he is, I 
shall consider no message, writing, or other act that 
comes from him, or is passed in his name, as proceed- 
ing from his free and voluntary disposition, but only 
from the said conspirators, who are making him serve 
as a mask for them, at the risk of his life. 

" But, madam, with all this freedom of speech, 
which I can foresee will in some sort displease you, 
though it is but the truth itself, you will think it still 
more strange, I am sure, that I importune you again 
with a request of much greater importance, and yet 
very easy for you to grant. This is, that, not having 
been able hitherto by accommodating myself pa- 
tiently for so long a time to the rigorous treatment of 
this captivity, and, carrying myself sincerely in all 
things, yea, even such as could concern you ever so 
little, in order to give some assurance of my entire 
affection for you, all my hope being taken away of 
being better treated for the very short period of my 
life that remains to me, I supplicate you for the sake 
of the painful passion of our Saviour and Redeemer, 
Jesus Christ, again I supplicate you, to permit me 
to withdraw myself out of your realm, into some 
place of repose, to seek some comfort for my poor 
body, worn out as it is with continual sorrows, that, 
with liberty of conscience, I may prepare my soul 
for God, who is daily calling for it. 

" Believe, madam, and the physicians whom you 
sent this last summer are able sufficiently to judge 
the same, that I am not for a long continuance, so as 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 353 

to give you any foundation for jealousy or distrust of 
me. And, notwithstanding this, require of me what- 
ever just and reasonable assurances and conditions 
you think fit. The greatest power rests always on 
your side, to make me keep them ; though on 
no account whatsoever would I wish to break them. 
You have had sufficient experience of my observance 
of my simple promises, and sometimes to my preju- 
dice; as I showed you on this very point about two 
years ago. Recollect, if you please, what I then 
wrote to you ; and if you will never be able to bind 
my heart to you so much as by kindness, though you 
keep my poor body languishing forever between four 
walls; those of my rank and nature not suffering 
themselves to be gained or forced by any rigor. 

" Your imprisonment, without any right or just 
ground, has already destroyed my body, of which you 
will shortly see the end, if it continues there a little 
longer; and my enemies will not have much time to 
glut their cruelty on me; nothing is left of me but 
the soul, which all your power cannot make captive. 
Give it, then, room to aspire a little more freely after 
its salvation, which is all that it now seeks, rather 
than any grandeur of this world. It seems to me 
that it cannot be any great satisfaction, honor, and 
advantage to you, for my enemies to trample my life 
under foot, till they have stifled me in your presence. 
Whereas, if, in this extremity, however late it be, you 
release me out of their hands, you will bind me 
strongly to you, and bind all those who belong to me, 
particularly my poor child, whom you will, perhaps, 
make sure to yourself by it. 

" I will not cease to importune you with this re- 

23 



354 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

quest, till it is granted. And on this account I beg 
you to let me know your intention ; having, in order 
to comply with you, delayed for two years till this 
time to renew my application for it. In the mean- 
time, provide, if you please, for the bettering of my 
treatment in this country, that I may not suffer any 
longer, and commit me not to the discretion of anv 
other whatever, but only your own self, from whom 
alone, (as I wrote to you lately,) I wish for the fu- 
ture to derive all the good and the evil which I shall 
experience in your dominions. Do me this favor, 
to let me, or the ambassador of France for me, have 
your intention in writing. For, to confine me to 
what the Earl of Scherusbury [Shrewsbury] or 
others shall say or write about it on your behalf, I 
have too much experience to be able to put any assur- 
ance in it; the least point which they shall capri- 
ciously fancy being sufficient to make a total change 
from one day to another. 

" Besides this, the last time I wrote to those of 
your council, you gave me to understand that I ought 
not to address myself to them, but to you alone; 
therefore, to extend their authority and credit only 
to do me hurt, could not be reasonable; as has hap- 
pened in this last limitation, in which, contrary to 
your intentions, I have been treated with much indig- 
nity. This gives me every reason to suspect that 
some of my enemies in your said council may have 
procured it with a design to keep others of the said 
council from being made privy to my just complaints, 
lest the others should perhaps see their companions 
adhere to their wicked attempts upon my life, which, 
if they should have any knowledge of them, they 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 355 

would oppose, for the sake of your honor and of their 
duty towards you. 

" Two things I have principally to require at the 
close : the one, that, near as I am to leaving this 
world, I may have with me for my consolation some 
honest churchman, to remind me daily of the course 
which I have to finish, and to teach me how to com- 
plete it conformably with my religion, in which I am 
firmly resolved to live and die. 

" This is a last duty, which cannot be denied the 
meanest and most abject person that lives: it is a 
liberty which you grant to all the foreign ambassa- 
dors, and which all Catholic Kings give to your am- 
bassadors — the exercise of their religion. And even 
I myself have not heretofore forced my own subjects 
to anything contrary to their religion, though I had 
all power and authority over them. And that I 
should be deprived in this extremity of such freedom, 
you cannot in justice require. What advantage will 
accrue to you if you deny it me ? I hope that God 
will forgive me, if, oppressed by you in this manner, 
I render him no other duty than what I shall be al- 
lowed to do in my heart. But you will set a very 
bad example to the other princes of Christendom, to 
act towards their subjects with the same rigor that 
you will show to me, a sovereign Queen, and your 
nearest relation, which I am, and shall be, as long as 
I live, in spite of my enemies. 

" I would not now trouble you with the increase of 
my household ; about which, for the short time I have 
to live, I need not care much. I require then from 
you only two bedchamber women to attend me during 
my illness; attesting to you before God, that they 



356 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

are very necessary to me, now that I am a forlorn 
creature among these simple people. Grant these to 
me, for God's sake; and show, in this instance, that 
my enemies have not so much credit with you against 
me as to exercise their vengeance and cruelty in a 
point of so little importance, and involving a mere 
office of humanity. 

" I will now come to that with which the Earl of 
Shrewsbury has charged me, if such a one as he can 
charge me, which is this : that, contrary to my prom- 
ise made to Beal, and without your knowledge, I have 
been negotiating with my son, to yield to him my 
title to the crown of Scotland, when I had obliged 
myself not to proceed in it but with your advice, by 
one of my servants, who should be directed by one 
of yours in their common journey thither. These are, 
I believe, the very words of the said earl. 

" I will tell you, madam, that Beal never had an 
absolute and unconditional promise from me, but, in- 
deed, conditional overtures, by which I cannot be 
bound, in the state in which the business is, unless the 
stipulations which I annexed to it are previously exe- 
cuted ; and so far is he from having satisfied me about 
this, that, on the contrary, I have never had any an- 
swer from him, nor heard mention of it since, on his 
part. And on this point, I well remember, that the 
Earl of Shrewsbury, about Easter last, wishing to 
draw from me a new confirmation of what I had 
spoken to the said Beal, I replied to him very fully, 
that it was only in case the said conditions should be 
granted, and consequently fulfilled toward me. Both 
are living to testify this, if they will tell the truth 
about it. Then, seeing that no answer was made to 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 357 

me, but on the contrary, that by delays and neglects 
my enemies continued more licentiously than ever 
their practices carried on ever since the sojourn of 
the said Beal with me, in order to thwart my just 
pretensions in Scotland, so that the effects have been 
well witnessed there ; by these means a door was left 
open for the ruin of myself and son ; I took your si- 
lence for a refusal, and discharged myself, by express 
letters, as well to you as to your council, from all that 
I had treated upon with the said Beal. 

" I make you fully privy to what monsieur, the 
King, and madame, the Queen, had written to me 
with their own hands, on this business, and I asked 
your advice upon it, which is yet to come, and on 
which it was in truth my intention to proceed, if you 
had given it me in time, and you had permitted me 
to send to my son, assisting me in the overtures which 
I had proposed to you, in order to establish between 
the two realms a good amity and perfect intelligence 
for the future. But to bind myself nakedly to fol- 
low your advice before I knew what it would be, and, 
for the journey of our servants, to put mine under the 
direction of yours, even to my own country, I was 
never yet so simple as to think of it. 

" Now I refer to your consideration, if you knew 
of the false game which my enemies in this country 
have played me in Scotland, to reduce things to the 
point at which they stand, which of us has proceeded 
with the greatest sincerity. God judge between them 
and me, and avert from this island the just punish- 
ment of their demerits ! 

" Take no heed of the intelligence which my trai- 
torous subjects in Scotland have given you. You will 



358 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

find, and I will maintain it before all the princes in 
Christendom, that nothing whatever has passed there 
on my side to your prejudice, or against the welfare 
and tranquillity of the realm, which I affect not less 
than any counselor or subject that you have, being 
more interested in it than any of them. 

" There was a negotiation for gratifying my son 
with the title and name of King, and for insuring 
as well the said title to him as impunity to the rebels 
for their past offences, and for replacing everything 
in repose and tranquillity for the future, without in- 
novation of any kind whatever. Was this taking 
away the crown from my son ? My enemies, I be- 
lieve, had no wish whatever that the crown should be 
secured to him, and are therefore glad that he should 
keep it by the unlawful violence of traitors, enemies 
from times of old to all our family. Was this then 
seeking for justice upon the past offences of the said 
traitors, which my clemency has always surpassed? 

" But an evil conscience can never be assured, car- 
rying its fear continually in its very great trouble 
within itself. Was it wishing to disturb the repose 
of the country to grant a mild pardon of everything 
past, and to effect a general reconciliation between 
all our subjects ? This is the point which our ene- 
mies in this country are afraid of, much as they pre- 
tend to desire it. What prejudice would be done to 
you by this ? Mark then, and verify, if you please, 
by what other point. I will answer it on my honor. 

" Ah ! will you, madam, suffer yourself to be so 
blind to the artifices of my enemies, as to establish 
their unjust pretensions to this crown, after you are 
gone ; nay, perhaps, against yourself 1 Will you suf- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 359 

fer them in your lifetime, and look on, while they 
are ruining and cruelly destroying those so nearly 
connected with you, both in heart and in blood ? 
What advantage and honor can you hope for in allow- 
ing them to keep us, my son and me, so long sepa- 
rated, and him and me from you ? 

" Redeem the old pledges of your good-nature ; 
bind your relations to yourself ; let me have the satis- 
faction, before I die, of seeing all matters happily 
settled between us ; that my soul, when released from 
this body, may not be constrained to make its lamen- 
tations to God for the wrongs which vou have suffered 
to be done it here below ; but rather that, being hap- 
pily united to you, it may quit this captivity, to go to 
Him, whom I pray to inspire you favorably upon my 
very just, and more than reasonable complaints and 
grievances. At Sheffield, this 8th of November, one 
thousand, five hundred, eighty-two. 

" Your very disconsolate nearest kinswoman, 
and affectionate cousin, 

" Mary R." 

The Queen of England was far from yielding to 
the captive's pleading. Recent events had decided 
her to keep Mary in secure confinement, where, as 
hitherto, failure should be the issue of all plots, 
against her own majesty, and in behalf of her rival. 
In poor Scotland, revolutions swept over the land, 
like the waves of a tempestuous deep. James VI. 
was young and weak, both in council and action. He 
entertained no ardent affection for his mother, con- 
sequently had not imbibed her ambitious hostility to 



360 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

Elizabeth. He was the creature of popular commo- 
tion, and capricious attachments to political favorites. 
Meanwhile, Philip II. and the Duke of Guise deter- 
mined to invade England, with a bold and decisive 
campaign. June 27th, 1583, James, by the assist- 
ance of Earl Huntley and others, regained his free- 
dom, and was prepared for the adventure. 

The Duke of Guise sent Charles Paget, under the 
assumed name of Mapo, who was one of the man- 
agers of Mary's dowry in France, to the English 
Catholics with this message: 

" Assure them, upon the faith and honor of Her- 
cules (the Duke of Guise,) that the enterprise has no 
other object than the establishment of the Catholic 
religion in England, and the peaceable restitution of 
the crown of England to the Queen of Scotland, to 
whom that crown of right belongs. As soon as this 
is done, all foreigners shall leave the kingdom, and if 
any refuse to do so, Hercules promises to join his 
forces to those of the inhabitants of the country, in 
order to drive them out." 

The grand expedition was doomed to inglorious 
close, like every movement which had been made for 
the imprisoned Queen. Elizabeth's counsellors dis- 
covered the scheme, and the result was a fiercer cru- 
sade upon Catholicism, and greater vigilance over 
Mary Stuart. The English Parliament convened, 
and aroused by the late designs upon Elizabeth and 
the realm, passed a bill, depriving Mary Stuart and 
all her descendants of the right of succession, if the 
sovereign of England met a violent death, and author- 
izing the pursuit and execution of any person found 
privy to the conspiracy, before a jury of twenty-four 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 361 

commissioners. Parliament also enacted, " the pen- 
alties of high treason against the English Catholic 
priest, ordained by the Bishop of Rome, who was 
found in the realm after the expiration of forty days ; 
attainted with felony all persons who should receive 
or assist him ; punished with fine and imprisonment, 
at the Queen's pleasure, all who knew of his being in 
the kingdom, and did not denounce him within twelve 
days ; ordered that all students in Catholic seminaries 
abroad, who did not return to England within six 
months after proclamation to that effect, should be 
punished as traitors ; that parents sending their chil- 
dren abroad without license, should forfeit for everv 
such offence one hundred pounds ; and that children 
so sent to seminaries, should be disabled from inher- 
iting the property of their parents." 

Mary discerned in these statutes the shadows of 
her hastening fate. She was removed, August 25th, 
1584, from Sheffield to Wingfield Castle. She signed 
a declaration in sentiment the same as that of the 
combination to protect the rights of Elizabeth. Jan- 
uary 5th, 1585, she wrote to the Archbishop of Glas- 
gow, that she desired to secure peace for the Queen 
of England, power for James VI., and freedom for 
herself. 

She finallv submitted with ffreat reluctance to the 
will of Sir Ralph Sadler, and his son-in-law, Somers, 
her new keepers, and was transferred from Wingfield 
to the cold and gloomy apartments of Tutbury Cas- 
tle. A letter to Mauvissiere and Chasteauneuf, 
jointly gives minutely a narrative of her cheerless 
captivity : 



362 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

THE QUEEN OF SCOTS TO M. DE MAUVISSIERE AND M. 
DE CHASTEAUNEUF. 

" Gentlemen, foreseeing that your answer to my 
last will be some time before it reaches me, I have 
thought it best, without waiting for it, to impart to 
you my just complaints concerning what Sir Amyas 
has been directed to signify to me, touching the me- 
morial which I have sent you, which amounts, in fact, 
to an absolute refusal of the principal request con- 
tained in it, namely, those relating to the change and 
conveniences of dwelling, intelligence concerning the 
affairs of my dowry by the Sieur de Cherelles, and 
the increase of the number of my servants — things, 
though trifling and of no importance to the Queen of 
England, madam my good sister, yet so necessary for 
the preservation of my life and health, so mainly con- 
tributing to the few comforts that are left to me in 
this world, and to my consolation between these four 
walls (where I perceive more clearly from day to 
day that they are determined to reduce me to the last 
extremity) that, but for the very urgent need I have 
of them, I should not have stooped to beg for them 
with such earnest and persevering supplications, that 
I think I could not have bought them at a dearer 
rate ; regretting exceedingly that, for all the duty I 
have imposed upon myself to please the said Queen in 
every thing and in every place, so little consideration 
and respect is paid to my honor and content in the 
matter of my state and treatment here. 

" To give you, then, ocular proof of the situation 
in which I find myself in regard to the dwelling in 
the first place, and that you may remonstrate in my 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 363 

behalf on the subject with the said Queen, (who, I 
presume, has never been accurately informed about 
it,) I will tell you that I am in a walled enclosure, on 
the top of a hill, exposed to all the winds and the in- 
clemencies of heaven ; within the said enclosure, re- 
sembling that of the wood of Vincennes, there is a 
very old hunting-lodge, built of timber and plaster, 
cracked in all parts, the plaster adhering nowhere to 
the woodwork, and broken in numberless places ; the 
said lodge distant three fathoms or thereabouts from 
the wall, and situated so low, that the rampart of 
earth which is behind the wall is on a level with the 
highest point of the building, so that the sun can 
never shine upon it on that side, nor any fresh air 
come to it ; for which reason it is so damp, that you 
cannot put any piece of furniture in that part without 
its being in four days completely covered with mould. 
I leave you to think how this must act upon the hu- 
man body; and, in short, the greater part of it is 
rather a dungeon for base and abject criminals, than 
a habitation fit for a person of my quality, or even of 
a much lower. I am sure that there is not a noble- 
man in this kingdom, nor even one of those who, 
being inferior to noblemen, wish to reduce me beneath 
themselves, who would not deem it a tyrannical pun- 
ishment to be obliged to live for a year in so straight- 
ened and inconvenient a habitation, as they want to 
force and constrain me to do ; and the only apart- 
ments that I have for my own person, consist — and 
for the truth of this, I can appeal to all those who 
have been here — of two little, miserable rooms, so ex- 
cessively cold, especially at night, that but for the 
ramparts and entrenchments of curtains of tapestry 



36± MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

which I have made here, it would not be possible for 
me to stay in them in the day-time ; and out of those 
who have sat up with me at night during my illness, 
scarcely one has escaped without fluxion, or cold, or 
some disorder. Sir Amyas can bear witness that he 
has seen three of my women ill at once from this 
cause alone ; and my physician himself, who has had 
his share of it, has several times positively declared 
that he will not take charge of my health during the 
next winter, if I am to remain in this house. As for 
replastering or in any way repairing or enlarging it, 
you may conceive how wholesome it would be for me 
to live in such new pieces of patchwork, when I can- 
not endure the least breath of damp air in the world ; 
and on this account it is of no use whatever to offer 
me to make any repairs or any new conveniences 
against the winter. As for the house to which it is pro- 
posed that I should remove during the said repairs, 
it is a building attached, as it were, to this ; and my 
keeper can testify that it is not in his power to lodge 
the few servants I have ; and, without them, I have 
too many reasons to be afraid of living thus apart, 
wherefore, at this time, I will say no more. If I must 
proceed to inconveniences, I have not, as I heretofore 
informed you, any gallery or cabinet, to retire to oc- 
casionally alone, excepting two paltry holes, with 
windows facing the dark, surrounding wall, and the 
largest of them not above a fathom and a half square. 
For taking the air abroad, on foot, or in my chaise, 
(there being no vacant spot on the top of the hill,) I 
have only about a quarter of an acre of ground, con- 
tiguous to the stables, which Sommer had dug up last 
winter, and enclosed with a fence of dry wood; a 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 365 

place, to look at, fitter to keep pigs in, than to bear the 
name of garden ; there is not a sheep-pen amid the 
fields but makes a bettor appearance. 

" As for taking exercise on horseback, during the 
whole winter, as I experienced, sometimes snow, some- 
times rain, break up the roads in such a manner, that 
there is no house containing so many people of the 
lower sort as this does, which can be kept clean long, 
whatever pains may be taken with it. Then, again, 
this house, having no drains to the privies, is subject 
to a continual stench; and every Saturday they are 
obliged to empty them and the one beneath my win- 
dows, from which I receive a perfume not the most 
agreeable. And if, to the above, I may be permitted 
the opinion which I have conceived of this house, a 
thing to be considered in the case of persons inferior 
in station to me when in ill health, I will say, that as 
this house has been my first prison and place of con- 
finement in this kingdom, where, from the first, I 
have been treated with a great harshness, rudeness, 
and indignity, so have I always held it since to be 
unlucky and unfortunate, as last winter, before com- 
ing hither, I caused to be represented to the said 
Queen of England ; and in this sinister opinion I have 
been not a little confirmed by the accident of the 
priest, who, after having been grievously tormented, 
was found hanging from the wall opposite to my win- 
dows,* about which I wrote to you, Monsieur de Mau- 

* The Catholic priest here mentioned had been persecuted 
on account of his religion ; and, to escape further hardships, 
he hung himself in the manner described by Mary, who, on 
the occasion, addressed to Eliznbeth an eloquent letter on 
the duty of permitting toleration, which is to be found in 
Laboureur's work. 



366 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

vissiere ; and then, four or five days afterward, an- 
other poor man was found who had tumbled into the 
well; but this I did not mean to compare with the 
other. Then I have lost my good Rallay, who was 
one of the chief consolations of my captivity ; another 
of my servants is since dead, and several more have 
been sorely troubled with illness. 

" So I cannot have any convenience or enjoyment 
here ; and, but for the express assurances which the 
said Queen, my good sister, gave me, of honorable 
treatment, and which caused me to wait for it with 
patience till now, I never would have set foot in this 
place; sooner should they have dragged me to it by 
force, as I now protest that nothing but the force of 
constraint makes me stay here, and that, in case my 
life should be cut short by illness, from this time, I 
impute it to the deficiency of my dwelling, and to 
those who are determined to keep me there, with the 
intention, it would seem, to make me wholly despair 
for the future of the good will of the said Queen, my 
good sister, in matters of importance; since, in such 
reasonable, ordinary wants, I am so ill-used and prom- 
ises made to me are not kept. To allege that the sea- 
son of the year is already too far advanced, and the 
time too short to provide a new habitation for me, as 
if I had not long ago made remonstrances on the sub- 
ject, is to forget that, at the time my secretary was 
there, he spoke about it very urgently to the Queen, 
my good sister, and left a memorial, at his departure, 
for Mr. Walsyngham. Since then, the point has 
been urged anew by Sommer, as well as by a message 
from my own lips, as by a memorial which was 
given to him, whereupon, I am told that the memorial 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 367 

was delivered to you, Mr. de Mauvissiere, and that 
the fault lies in your not having followed it up ; nev- 
ertheless, I have written to you several times, and 
myself solicited Sir Amyas about it, so that no 
trouble has been spared on that head. 

" As to the inconveniences of removal at this sea- 
son, and for the provisions requisite to be made, they 
did not stand last year upon such ceremony, when 
they obliged me to leave Sheffield for Winkfield, and 
Winkfield for this place, in the depth of winter, when 
I was scarcely able to turn in bed, which I had kept 
for nearly three months before. This house, which 
had not been inhabited for the space of fifteen or six- 
teen years, was, at that time, prepared in less than 
five weeks, and, such as it was, they lost no time in 
bringing me to it, no matter whether with or without 
my consent. However, I affectionately beg you both 
to insist more urgently and perseveringly than ever, 
in the name of the King, monsieur my good brother, 
and on my own behalf, on my removal from this house 
and the conveniences which, from the foregoing, you 
may judge necessary in the new one that shall be 
appointed for me ; and do not be put off, if you 
please, with excuses, evasions, or fair words that may 
be given you, if they are not to the effect that is capa- 
ble of satisfying and contenting me in this matter. 
Insist, also, by all means, I beg you, on permission 
for the Sieur de Cherelles to come to me, reminding 
the said Queen, my good sister, how she was pleased, 
till last winter, to allow me to have some one over 
every year to give me an account of my affairs, as it is 
very requisite, and more than reasonable, especially 
considering the state in which they are at present, 



368 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

from the attacks that are daily made upon my rights, 
and the hindrances and annoyances that are given me 
in the enjoyment of the little which is left me of 
my dowry, one-third of which, and more, has already 
been wrested from me by piecemeal ; and it is not in 
my power to apply a remedy, and set things to rights, 
unless I can be minutely informed of the particulars 
by some trusty person, who, it is well known, would 
not attempt to write to me by letters which must pass 
through so many hands, neither would I thus openly 
inform them of my intentions. There is no crim- 
inal or prisoner, however mean, who is not permitted 
to receive accounts of his private affairs, and to man- 
age them as he pleases, prisons having never been 
designed for the punishment of malefactors, but only 
for safe custody ; and it seems, on the contrary, that, 
as for me, born a sovereign Queen, who sought refuge 
in this kingdom upon the assurance and promise of 
friendship, they wish to make this imprisonment 
drive me from affliction to the very last extremity, 
as if it were not sufficient that, after seventeen of the 
best years of my life spent in such misery, I have 
lost the use of my limbs, and the strength and health 
of the rest of my body, and that various attacks have 
been made upon my honor, but they must persecute 
me in the bargain, and abridge me as much as possi- 
ble of the property and conveniences yet left me in 
the world. Learn, then, if you please, gentlemen, if 
the Queen, my good sister, intends to treat me in 
future like a condemned criminal, and to keep me in 
perpetual imprisonment, as it would appear from the 
severity with which I am used, without getting rid 
of me altogether by giving me my liberty, (from 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 369 

which, agreeably to the conditions which I offered, 
she would derive more advantage than she ever will 
from my detention or death,) or, on the other hand, 
affording me occasion to accommodate myself to her 
satisfaction in captivity. My requests are not made 
for pleasure, but from necessity, not against her 
safety, but for her honor, and such, I may say, as I 
have more than justly merited. What encourage- 
ment to do better can it be to me to see myself, after 
the entire voluntary submission to which I made up 
my mind, more harshly and rigorously treated than 
ever, and with more demonstration, in appearance 
and reality, of ill will, suspicion, and mistrust. 

" I had more servants, when I was with the Earl 
of Shereusbury than I have now, when I have more 
need of them, especially in my chamber, on account 
of the aggravation of my bodily ailments. Reckon 
up those whom I have discharged, or who have died 
without my having, as yet, any others in their place, 
and that family of my embroiderer who is about to 
leave me ; the number of those whom I require will 
not be much greater, nor superior in quality, except- 
ing the Countess of Athol, for whom, also, I applied 
as a favor, because I had about me here, in this soli- 
tude, as I represented, no companion worthy of my 
rank and my age, which would be highly proper and 
suitable. Seton and my good Rallay formerly sup- 
plied the want of better, and I cannot imagine any 
sufficient reason for denying me the said countess in 
their stead, unless they are fearful that she may give 
me some consolation, by bringing me tidings of my 
son ; whether in this there be any respect for human- 
ity, I leave all those to consider, who have really felt 
24 



370 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

parental love for their children, which is the more 
fervent in me, because my separation from my son 
is accompanied by so rigid a prohibition of all com- 
munication between him and me, that I am debarred 
even from hearing about his state and health. I will 
not hereupon call to mind that the said Queen prom- 
ised me, last winter, that if the answer of my son to 
the letter which I was writing to him, did not satisfy 
and content me, I should have permission to send to 
him again, and to learn more precisely his intentions 
relative to those matters which have been in doubt 
between him and me. Nevertheless, this has hither- 
to been peremptorily refused and denied me, with- 
out consideration that such conduct tends to confirm 
the intimation given me formerly by the said Gray, 
that in this quarter people were only striving to pro- 
duce division and a total separation between my son 
and me. With respect to the other servants whom I 
have applied for, such as Fontenay, and Thomas 
Levingston, I cannot discover any ground for the re- 
fusal made me, unless it be that, as formerly, the said 
Gray, at the time of his journey to this country, and 
the Countess of Shereusbury assured me, the right 
way to cause anything whatever to be denied me, was 
to signify that it would be particularly agreeable to 
me, and then I must never expect to have it, but just 
the contrary to what I desired. They do not ap- 
prove of my employing English, in order to make it 
appear more plainly that I am looked upon as an ab- 
solute foreigner in their country ; at least they ought 
to allow me to have my own subjects, or French peo- 
ple, such as I like, and to receive from their faithful 
service some consolation between these four walls, 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 371 

where, being confined and watched so closely as they 
are accustomed to be, I know not what just suspicion 
can be conceived of them when once shut up here. 
However, I beg you to make very urgent application 
that I may be permitted to send for those whom I 
have demanded, as well from France as from Scot- 
land, according to the promise made to me by the lips 
of the said Queen, my good sister herself, that I 
should have an increase and supply of servants ; a 
promise confirmed to my secretary by Mr. Walsyng- 
ham, and since, in his name, by Wadde, having given 
it in writing to my said secretary, and again by Sir 
Raff Sadler and Sommer, when there, was lately by 
my present keeper, being assured in these very words, 
that I might send to France and Scotland for such 
servants as I thought proper, but that I must not 
have English on any account. If they are afraid, 
lest, by means of the said servants whom I desire to 
bring over from France, I should receive news of the 
affairs of that country, it is a vain apprehension, for 
I have nothing wherein to intermeddle there, and if 
I had any interest, it is very certain that those who 
might be well affected toward me, and have compas- 
sion on my condition here, will not take one step less, 
either forward or backward, because they are de- 
prived of the means of receiving news from me, and 
I from them ; on the contrary, that would spur them 
on still more, apprehending the danger from the death 
to be greater than, peradventure, it is. 

" This is, for the present, what I have to communi- 
cate to you on the sudden, concerning the just dissat- 
isfaction I feel on finding myself so unworthily used 
and treated ; whereof, hoping, through your favorable 



372 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

intercessions and good offices, to find some remedy, I 
shall only apologize for having troubled you about 
such bagatelles, and especially for being obliged to 
make known to you my real state here, which other- 
wise might be disguised from you ; so, awaiting your 
answer about all this, I pray God to have you, gentle- 
men, in his holy and worthy keeping. Written at 
the Castle of Tuthbury, in England, the vth Septem- 
ber, 1585. Your entirely best friend, 

" Mary R." 

" Gentlemen, I am ashamed to be under the neces- 
sity of representing to you so particularly my miser- 
able situation here, but the evil presses me, and con- 
strains me to declare it to you, in order that they may 
not put you off, yonder, with words without affording 
me any relief, of which I have no hope whatever, 
since I see nothing at this time which tends to realize 
that honorable treatment which has been so much 
talked of. Sir Amyas had already signified to me 
the reply to my memorial, and an hour ago I re- 
ceived your last, and on considering both, I find, in 
fact, no cause for content, either in the one or the 
other, which makes me entreat you more earnestly 
than ever, to follow up the contents of the above let- 
ter." 

She also addressed a memorial to Elizabeth, in 
which the following particulars confirm the state- 
ments above: 

" That to settle those matters which formerly led 
to differences between her and her son, she may be 
permitted to send some one to him, accompanied by 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 373 

the French ambassador, agreeably to the most express 
commission which he has to this effect from the King, 
his master. 

" That the ordinary communication which she has 
hitherto had with the said ambassador may be con- 
tinued ; and, accordingly, directions given for the 
most diligent dispatch of their packets, as well on the 
one part as on the other; nothing passing between 
them that can in any way prove prejudicial to this 
kingdom. 

" That her household establishment here be deter- 
mined upon and fixed ; in order that, as the said 
Queen, her good sister, has been pleased to assure her, 
she may take her into her own keeping, and into her 
own house : also, that from her alone, she may re- 
ceive her allowance in this country. 

" That a second house may be granted her to re- 
move to on finishing her course of diet, or next au- 
tumn, at latest; it being quite impossible, without 
great detriment to her health, to live in winter in the 
two rooms which she has here for the whole of her 
lodgings, which are built of wood, old, full of holes, 
and tumbling down on all sides, and having no shel- 
tered place whatever, to walk in or retire to. 

" That in regard to the servants allowed her, and 
that they may not have the trouble of traveling hither 
in vain, it be declared whether she shall be permitted 
to bring over any she may choose, as she might se- 
lect some from the household of Guise, having no 
other acquaintance in France through whom to get 
them. 

" And that, as for ordinary varlets, her servants 
may be permitted to employ Englishmen, so as to 



374 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

avoid the frequent coming and going of such per- 
sons, whom it is difficult to retain." 

The wretched Mary was a deserted invalid, mourn- 
ing over the unfilial conduct of James VI., who had 
entered upon a negotiation, contemplating the alli- 
ance, by treaty, of Scotland to England. She be- 
came passionately excited at his course, and threat- 
ened to disown, disinherit, and curse him ; approving 
any invasion of his realm by foreign powers. She 
declared that she had no wish again to step upon her 
native soil ; and asked only for repose of body and 
soul, before her death, which, she was persuaded, 
would soon end her captivity. 

Abandoning the hope of escape, she forcibly and 
laconically described her desperate state in these 
words : 

" The old excuses of bygone times are alleged for 
my detention; now a change in Scotland, now a dis- 
turbance in France, now the discovery of a conspir- 
acy in this country, and, in fine, the least innovation 
that may occur in any part of Christendom ; so that 
it is likely I shall be liberated, as children say, when 
all the world is at peace and quietness. May God in 
his omnipotence be my aid and protection ; and may 
he in his justice judge my cause between me and my 
enemies, as I hope he will do sooner or later." * 

* The sorrowful lines, in her favorite language, composed 
during this imprisonment, will interest the French reader : 

" Que suis-je, helas ! et de quoy sert ma vie ? 
Je ne suis fors qu'un corps prive de cueur 
Un ombre vain, un objet de malheur, 
Qui n'a plus rien que de mourir envie. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 375 

December, 1585, Mary was taken from Tutbury 
to Chartley, in Staffordshire. Though treated more 
kindly, she was watched with no less constancy and 
care. 

While Mary Stuart thus languished in prison, 
friends to her and the ancient faith she professed, 
were busy with fresh plots for her deliverance. The 
English refugees and proscribed priests in the pay of 
Philip II., engaged in a conspiracy for invading the 
kingdom and dethroning Elizabeth. Past experience 
stimulated rather than daunted a faction, whose mis- 
sion was also the spread of a persecuting and corrupt 
church. 

John Savage, an English Catholic, returning from 
an official service in the Spanish army, at Rheims, 
met Dr. William Gifford, a countryman and Papist, 
who suggested, as the highest deed of pious bravery in 
his power, the assassination of Elizabeth — the pre- 
lude to a maturing plan of invasion. He accepted 
the honor, and was to shoot or stab the Queen, in the 
gallery through which she passed to and from chapel. 

But before he could attempt the execution of his 
purpose, a priest, named Ballard, arrived in London, 
May 22d, 1585, on the same mission. Encountering 

Plus ne portez, o ennemis, d'auvie 
A qui n'a plus l'esprit a la grandeur ! 
La consomme d'excessive doulleur ; 
Votre ire en brief se voirra assouvie ; 
Et vous amys, qui m'avez tenu chere, 
Souvenez-vous que sans heur, sans santay, 
Je ne sgaurois auqun bon oeuvre fayre, 
Souhatez done fin de calamitay ; 
Et que sa bas estant assez punie 
J'aye ma part en la joye infinie," 



376 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

Anthony Babington, a gentleman of fortune and gay 
life, who had been for years devoted to Mary Stuart, 
Ballard proposed to him the plot. He entered into 
it enthusiastically, and associated with him Savage 
and five of his own friends. Walsingham, the Eng- 
glish minister, had arranged a complete system of es- 
pionage, and scarcely had the conspirators assembled, 
when his agents were without suspicion admitted to 
their councils. He also communicated to Mary 
Stuart through a treacherous Catholic priest, the se- 
cret designs against Elizabeth, to secure her approval, 
and the inevitable doom which would follow ; and so 
rid the realm of the dreaded captive. 

During the summer, Gifford, Walsingham's spy, 
was busy, preparing the way of access to Mary's par- 
tizans and herself. He at length obtained the neces- 
sary confidence among the Papists of London, and 
letters of introduction to the prisoner at Chartley. 
In March, 1586, he returned from an interview with 
Mary, the accepted messenger of the fatally deluded 
victim of ambition and Catholic zeal. The ignis 
fatuus of false hope again dawned before her fading 
eye, and her pantings after freedom impelled her on 
to ruin. This was the opening work in the cele- 
brated " Babington Conspiracy." The presiding 
genius of the daring machination, thus expressed his 
plans, in a letter which GifTord transmitted to Wal- 
singham : 

" Myself in person, with ten gentlemen and a hun- 
dred others of our company and suite, will undertake 
the deliverance of your royal person from the hands 
of your enemies. As regards getting rid of the usur- 



Mary queen of scots. 377 

per from subjection to whom we are absolved, by the 
act of excommunication issued against her, there are 
six gentlemen of quality, all of them my intimate 
friends, who, for the love they bear to the Catholic 
cause and to your majesty's service, will undertake 
the tragic execution. It remains now, that, accord- 
ing to their infinite desert, and your majesty's good- 
ness, their heroic enterprise should be honorably rec- 
ommended in themselves, if they escape with their 
lives, or in their posterity, if they fall; and that I 
may give them this assurance by your majesty's au- 
thority." 

Poor Mary was in the snares of the artful fowler. 
July 27th, having received the intercepted letter, she 
wrote to Babington as follows: 

" Affairs being thus prepared, then shall it be time 
to set the six gentlemen to work ; taking order, upon 
the accomplishing of their design, I may suddenly be 
transported out of the place, and that all your forces, 
in the same time, be on the field to meet me, whilst 
we wait the arrival of help from abroad, which must 
then be hastened with all diligence. Nor for that 
there can be no certain day appointed of the accom- 
plishing the said gentlemen's designment — to the end 
that others may be in readiness to take me from 
hence, I would that the said gentlemen had always 
about them, or at the least, at court, four stout men 
furnished with good and speedy horses, for, so soon 
as the said design shall be executed, to come with all 
diligence, to advertise thereof those that shall be ap- 
pointed for my transporting; to the end that, imme- 
diately thereafter, they may be at the place of my 



378 ;mary queen of scots. 

abode, before that my keeper can have advice of the 
execution of the said design ; or at least before he can 
fortify himself within the house, or carry me out of 
the same. It were necessary to dispatch two or three 
of the said advertisers by divers ways, to the end that 
if one be staid, the other may come through ; and at 
the same instant, were it also needful, to essay to cut 
off the post's ordinary ways. If I remain here, there 
is for my escape but one of these three means follow- 
ing to be looked to. The first, that at one certain 
day appointed, in my walking abroad on horseback 
on the moors, betwixt this and Stafford, where ordi- 
narily you know very few people do pass, a fifty or 
three-score horsemen, well horsed and armed, come 
to take me there ; as they may easily, my keeper hav- 
ing with him ordinarily but eighteen or twenty horse- 
men. The second mean is to come at midnight, or 
soon after, to set fire in the barns and stables, which 
you know are near to the house ; and whilst that my 
guardian's servants shall rush forth to the fire, your 
company (having every one a mark whereby they 
may know one another under night,) might surprise 
the house, where I hope, with the few servants I have 
about me, I were able to give you correspondence. 
And the third: some that bring carts hither, ordi- 
narily coming early in the morning ; their carts might 
be so prepared, and with such cart-leaders, that being 
cast in the midst of the great gate, the cart might fall 
down or overwhelm, and that thereupon you might 
come suddenly with your followers to make yourself 
masters of the house, and carry me away." 

When Walsingham had possessed himself of all 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 379 

the proofs required, and the track of each conspira- 
tor, he informed Elizabeth of the terrible intrigues 
around her throne. She was alarmed, and ordered 
an immediate arrest of the guilty men. With mani- 
fold difficulties and partial failures, the leaders were 
secured in the Tower. Walsingham now was ready 
to treat Mary Stuart as their accomplice. According 
to an unsuspected arrangement, she was invited to 
join a hunting party in a neighboring park ; she 
gladly accepted. It was on the 8th of August ; and 
while riding away from Chartley, Sir Thomas Gorges 
appeared before her, informed her of the discovered 
conspiracy, and of orders to conduct her to Tixall 
Castle,* whose grounds were the sporting field in 
view. The astonished Queen was silent awhile, then 
with great vehemence indulged in bitter reproaches, 
and inquired of her attendants if they would permit 
the disgraceful capture, without an effort to defend 
her person. She was led to the fortress, confined in 
a small apartment, and allowed to see none but 
strangers. During the absence of seventeen days 
from Chartley, her desks were opened by Wood and 
Paulet, who transmitted her papers, jewelry and 
money to Elizabeth. The Queen of England was re- 
lieved, and joyful, and extravagantly thanked the 
Vandals for their pillage. August 25th, when with 
a large escort of horsemen she reentered Chartley, the 
spectacle of her desolate room kindled her indigna- 
tion, and she exclaimed, " There are two things which 
the Queen of England can never take from me — the 

* Tixall, the mansion of Sir Walter Aston, was about three 
miles from Chartley, which in turn is eleven miles northeast 
of Stafford, 



380 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

blood royal which gives me a right to the succession 
of England, and the attachment which makes my 
heart beat for the religion of my fathers." 

Babington, Ballard and Savage, were condemned 
for treason, and to make their fate the more influen- 
tial in deterring others from similar crimes, they 
were put to the torture, and made the targets of royal 
vengeance. 

September 20th, with their confederates, they were 
taken to St. Giles-in-fields,* where they had held their 
meetings, and there drawn and quartered in the sight 
of a horror-smitten populace. Elizabeth accumu- 
lated evidence of Mary's guilt, and yet the fear of 
foreign interference, and the enmity of powerful 
friends of the prisoner, created hesitation and con- 
flicting emotions, before she decided to bring her to 
trial. 

Mary no longer fanned the embers of hope; she 
wept at the threshold of her last earthly trial, whose 
issues would deliver up to the final audit, that ar- 
raigns alike Kings and serfs, her eventful career. 

* The church of St. Giles-in-the-Fields is situated in High- 
street, a little to the south of New Oxford-street, London. 



CHAPTEE IX. 

Nineteen years of captivity had worn away, and 
Mary Stuart's death, which had been often suggested 
and anxiously desired, was the theme of grave and 
final discussion between Elizabeth and her privy 
council. Closer imprisonment was urged in opposi- 
tion to capital punishment. But the consideration of 
the safety of the Queen of England, and the triumph 
of Protestantism, decided the vote for a public trial, 
and judicial sentence. The statute under which the 
prisoner was arraigned, was the law passed after the 
act of association expired, the year before, conferring 
the power to prosecute and execute any person who 
should assert a right to the English throne, or engage 
in plots to wrest the crown from the brow of Eliza- 
beth. This was more plausible than the statute of 
Edward III., on high treason. 

Mary was indicted October 5th, 1586, before a 
court of state officers, peers, and counselors of the sov- 
ereign. The whole number of eminent names in the 
tribunal was forty-six. Eortheringay Castle, in 
Northamptonshire, was selected as the place of trial. 
Mary Stuart was escorted to the fortress the next day, 
where she received a letter from Elizabeth, repeating 
her cutting accusations, and urging her to submit to 
the course of justice. Turning to Paulet and Mild- 
may, her keeper and privy counselor, she said, with 
great emotion and resentment: 

381 



382 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

" What ! does your mistress not know that I am a 
Queen born ? Does she think that I will degrade my 
rank, my condition, the race from which I spring, the 
son who is to succeed me, the foreign kings and 
princes whose rights would he injured in my person, 
by obeying such a letter as that ! — Never ! Hum- 
bled as I may seem, my heart is too great to submit 
to any humiliation ! " 

She added, further, that she was deprived of her 
papers, destitute of advisers, and surrounded by ene- 
mies ; that she was ignorant of the laws and the stat- 
utes of the kingdom, where she must look in vain for 
peers competent to try her ; and finally declared that 
she was innocent. " I have neither," she said, " di- 
rected nor encouraged any attempt against your mis- 
tress. I am certain that nothing of the kind can be 
proved against me, although I frankly confess that, 
when my sister had rejected all my offers, I com- 
mitted myself and my cause to the care of foreign 
princes." 

Mary's refusal to be treated as a criminal, and as- 
serting her queenly dignity, did not foil her captor, 
who ordered the commissioners to commence the 
investigation ; while, to obtain consent to the legal or- 
deal, she wrote the desolate, yet proud descendant of 
Bruce, in this strain : 

" You have tried in various ways to take my life, 
and to ruin my kingdom by bloodshed. I have never 
acted so harshly towards you, but, on the contrary, 
have preserved you as if you were my second self. 
Your treasonable acts will be proved and made man- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 383 

ifest. For this reason, our pleasure is that you reply 
to the nobles and peers of my kingdom, as you would 
do if I myself were present. I require and command 
you to do this. I have been informed of your arro- 
gance : act with candor, and you shall be treated with 
greater favor." 

Lord Burghley advised Mary to yield to what was 
inevitable; and after a night of mental anguish — > 
the fierce struggle of wounded pride with resistless 
power — she gave her consent to answer her judges 
upon the charges presented. 

October 14th, followed by a detachment of halber- 
diers, and supported by her maitre d'hotel, Sir An- 
drew Melville, and her physician, Bourgoin, for she 
walked with great difficulty, she descended into the 
great hall of Fotheringay, where the commissioners 
were seated in the form of a court of justice. At 
one end of the hall, under a dais, surmounted by the 
arms of England alone, stood, in an elevated position, 
an arm-chair, reserved for the absent Queen Eliza- 
beth, and which remained unoccupied. On each side 
of the dais were ranged, in the order of their respec- 
tive dignities, the different commissioners: on the 
right, the Lord Chancellor Bromley, the Lord High 
Treasurer Burghley, the Earls of Oxford, Kent, Der- 
by, Worcester, Butland, Cumberland, Warwick, 
Pembroke, Lincoln, and Viscount Montagu ; on the 
left, Lords Abergavenny, Zouch, Morley, Stafford, 
Grey, Lumley, and other peers, next to whom were 
the Lords of the Privy Council, Crofts, Hatton, Wal- 
singham, Sadler, Mildmay, and Paulet. More in tho 
front were placed, on the right, the Chief Justices of 



384 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

England and Chief Baron of the Exchequer, and on 
the left, the other judges and barons, along with two 
doctors of civil law. In the centre were seated, 
around a table, the Queen's Attorney General, Pop- 
ham; her Solicitor, Egerton; her Law Sergeant, 
Gawdy; and Thomas Powell, Clerk of the Crown, 
together with two clerks of the court, to write out the 
proceedings. A few gentlemen of the neighborhood 
who were allowed to be present, stood at the bar.* 

The helpless Queen was undaunted by the brilliant 
and solemn array of England's statesmen and jurists, 
and offered her salutations with the mournful air of 
fallen greatness, and the gracefulness of perfect re- 
finement. When led to the velvet chair designed for 
her, and set without the royal canopy, she was 
touched with the insult to her dignity, and said with 
imperial tone, " I am a Queen ; I was married to a 
King of France, and my place should be there." 
Then glancing along the aisle of nobles and counsel- 
ors, she added, " Alas ! there are a great number of 
counselors here, and yet not one of them is for me." 

Bromley, the Chancellor, rose as Mary Stuart took 
her seat, and opened the imposing trial, by declaring 
the imperative duty the cause of God and invaded 
authority imposed upon Elizabeth, to arraign and try 
the prisoner. The clerk of the crown followed with 
the reading of the commission of the court. Mary, 
in reply, claimed her rights as a princess, and accused 
her rival of unkindly abusing her confidence, in re- 
jecting all overtures, and detaining her a captive. 

The intercepted letters, and the confessions of the 

* Mignet. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 385 

conspirators, were then read. Mary immediately, 
and without the slightest embarrassment, assailed the 
testimony, denying its validity, because the docu- 
ments were copies of unproduced originals, and the 
depositions were those of men whom she had never 
seen. She summed up her defence in these words, 
sighing deeply while she proceeded : 

" I do not deny having wished for liberty, and hav- 
ing earnestly tried to regain it. Mature urged me to 
this ; but I take God to witness, that I have never 
conspired against the life of the Queen of England, 
and that I never approved of such a conspiracy. I 
confess that I wrote to my friends, soliciting their 
aid in delivering me from the wretched prisons, 
where I have been held captive for nineteen years. 
I confess, too, that I have often written in favor of 
the persecuted Catholics, and that if I could have de- 
livered them from oppression by the shedding of my 
own blood, I would have done it. But the letters 
produced against me were not written by me, and I 
cannot be answerable for the dangerous designs of 
desperate persons, who are unknown to me." 

The Lord Treasurer answered with a close analysis 
of the Babington letter, and the corroborative evi- 
dence. Mary adroitly adhered to her position, and 
glanced at the character of such witnesses as she 
knew, with much discrimination and sarcasm; and 
thus closed her spirited and well delivered argument : 

" And am I, a Queen, to be judged guilty on such 
proofs as these ? Is it not manifest, that there must 
be an end to the majesty and security of princes, if 
they are made to depend on the writings and the tes- 
timony of their secretaries ? I claim the privilege of 

25 



386 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

being judged from my own words and my own writ- 
ings, and I am certain that none will be found against 
me.' 7 

Upon the second hearing before the commissioners, 
Mary did not repudiate all of her alleged correspon- 
dence, but still protested her innocence. She said, 
" I have been anxious that the safety of the Catholics 
should be provided for, but I never wished that it 
should be obtained by means of bloodshed and mur- 
der. I have preferred the part of Esther to that of 
Judith, seeking rather to intercede with God for the 
people, than to deprive even the meanest of them of 
life." 

The invasion of England and Elizabeth's death, it 
was maintained, were connected inseparably. The 
prisoner insisted that she was guiltless of any design 
against the life of the Queen of England: with the 
eloquence of finished oratory and tears, she went on 
to say : 

"With what justice am I treated ! My letters have 
been picked out and perverted from their original 
meaning, and the originals have been taken from me. 
"No consideration is shown for the religion which I 
profess, and the sacred character I bear as Queen. 
If my sentiments, my lords, are personally indiffer- 
ent to you, you might at least consider the majesty 
of royalty, which is injured in my person, and think 
of the example you are setting. I entered this coun- 
try confiding in the friendship and the promises of 
the Queen of England," and then, taking a ring from 
her finger, and holding it up to her judges, " Here, 
my lords, here is the pledge of love and protection 
which I received from your royal mistress. Look 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 387 

well at it. It was in reliance upon this that I came 
among you. Nobody knows better than yourselves 
how this pledge has been respected." She then de- 
manded to be heard before Parliament, or to have an 
interview with Elizabeth, and added, " As one who is 
accused of crimes, I claim the privilege of an advo- 
cate to plead my cause ; or else, as a Queen, I call 
upon you to believe the word of a Queen." 

After this appeal, October 15th, 1586, the commis- 
sioners unanimously gave the sentence of condemna- 
tion against the unhappy and defenceless Mary. The 
last act of her stern jurors and judges, which sealed 
her fate, charged her with the knowledge of the Bab- 
ington plot, to destroy Elizabeth, and invade Eng- 
land with a Papal army. The legitimacy and honor 
of James VI. were carefully guarded in the ruin of 
the mother. Parliament assembled, and approved 
the decision ; with expressions of thanksgiving to God 
for the discovery of the dangerous schemes of their 
sovereign's enemies, the members of both houses de- 
manded of the Queen the execution of the sentence of 
the high court of the realm. In reply, she rendered 
praise to the Divine Goodness for miraculous deliver- 
ance from so many perils, and closed a message of 
regret that she was compelled to deal severely with 
" the unfortunate lady," in the following language : 

" Do not hurry my decision. It is an affair of 
great importance, and I am accustomed to deliberate 
longer on less weighty matters before making up my 
mind. I shall pray Almighty God to enlighten my 
understanding, and to show me what will be best for 
the interests of his church, the prosperity of my peo- 
ple, and your own security." 



388 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

" Elizabeth's mind was distressed with the respon- 
sibility which she could not escape. How far her ap- 
parent agitation was designed for effect, is a matter 
of conjecture, founded upon the general estimate of 
her character. But there was occasion to feel, as she 
said, more perplexed than ever before — that she 
could have wished to preserve her own life without 
sacrificing that of another — and that it appeared 
cruel to dip the hands of the executioner in the blood 
of so near a relative. In putting off with further de- 
lay the importunate Parliament, she closed the inter- 
view with the chancellor and speaker, saying : " If 
I accede to your request, I should say, perhaps, more 
than I think; and, if I reject it, I precipitate myself 
into the very danger from which you would save me. 
Accept, I pray you, my thanks and my perplexities, 
and take in good part an answer which is no answer." 

Meanwhile, November 10th, Lord Bathurst and 
Robert Beale, clerk of the council, were dispatched 
to Fotheringay Castle, and announced to Mary the 
result of the trial, and the vote of Parliament, and 
urged an immediate preparation for execution. The 
terrible tidings were listened to by the royal captive 
with no visible signs of alarm or grief. She thanked 
God for being deemed worthy to be instrumental in 
advancing the Catholic faith, and to suffer in the holy 
cause. The messengers of doom assured her, that 
she could neither be regarded as a saint or a martyr, 
having been involved in the fearful intrigues, whose 
aim was an armed invasion of the kingdom, and the 
overthrow of its sovereign. She was treated thence- 
forth with marked indignity. Her request for a spir- 
itual adviser was rejected; and Paulet ordered a can- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 389 

opy bearing her arms to be removed. The friendless 
Queen wrote the Pope, asking his blessing, commit- 
ting her son to his fatherly care, and resigned herself 
to the prospect of hastening death. The following 
letters were written at this time. They disclose her 
frame of feeling, and her ardent devotion to the 
church of Rome. 

THE QUEEN" OF SCOTS TO DON BERNARD DE MENDOCA.* 

" My very dear friend — Having ever found you 
zealous in the cause of God, and desirous of my wel- 
fare and deliverance from captivity, I have always 
communicated to you all my intentions upon that sub- 
ject, begging you to make them known to the King, 
my good brother. For this same reason I now write 
to bid you a last adieu, notwithstanding the little 
leisure I have, being about to receive the stroke of 
death, which was announced to me on Saturday last ; 
I do not know when, or in what manner ; but at least 
you may praise God for me that, through his grace, I 
have had the heart to receive this unjust sentence of 
heretics with resignation, on account of the happiness 
which I esteem it to shed my blood at the requisi- 
tion of the enemies of His church, who do me the 
honor to say that it cannot be subverted while I am 
alive, and also that their Queen cannot reign in safety 
in the same predicament. 

" As for these two conditions, I have accepted with- 
out contradiction the high honor which they confer 
upon me, as one most zealous for the Catholic religion 

* The Spanish Ambassador, 



390 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

for which I have publicly offered my life ; and, as for 
the other, although I have never committed either act 
or deed tending to take off her who was on the throne, 
unless it be that they make a crime of my right to 
the crown, which is acknowledged by all Catholics, 
yet I would not contradict them, leaving them to 
think as they please. This annoyed them much, and 
they told me that, whatever I might say or do, it 
will not be for the cause of religion that I shall die, 
but for having endeavored to murder their Queen. 
This I denied, as being utterly false, having never at- 
tempted any such thing, and leaving it to God and 
the church to dispose of this island in what relates 
to religion. 

" The bearer of this has promised to relate to you 
how rigorously I have been treated by those here, and 
how ill served by others whom I did not expect to 
have shown so great a fear of death in so just a quar- 
rel. They have not been able to draw anything from 
me but that I am a Queen, free, Catholic, and obe- 
dient to the church ; and that, not being able to ef- 
fect my deliverance by fair means, I was compelled 
to seek it by those which presented themselves. ISTau 
has confessed all; Curie has in a great measure fol- 
lowed his example ; so that everything turns against 
me. I am threatened, if I do not beg pardon ; but I 
say that, as they had already destined me to die, they 
might proceed with their injustice, hoping that God 
will recompense me in another world ; and, out of 
spite, because I will not speak, they came yesterday, 
Monday, and took down my canopy,* saying that I 
was no more than a dead woman, and without any 
* A cloth of state, or a sort of throne. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 391 

rank. They are at present working in my hall — 
erecting the scaffold, I suppose, whereon I am to per- 
form the last act of this tragedy. I die in a just 
cause, and am happy in having made over my rights 
to the King, your master. I have said that I con- 
sider him, should my son not return to the bosom of 
the church, as being a prince the most worthy to gov- 
ern and direct this island. I have written to the 
same purposes to his Holiness, and I beg you to as- 
sure him that I die in the determination which I have 
communicated to you, and also another, whom you 
know to be his dearest and most intimate friend, and 
a fourth, and these above all others I bequeath to the 
protection of the King, beseeching him in God's name 
not to abandon them, and entreating them to serve 
him in place of me. As I cannot write to them, greet 
them in my name, and pray to God, all of you, for 
my soul. I have asked for a priest; but I do not 
know if my request will be granted. They have of- 
fered me one of their bishops; but I positively re- 
fused him. You may believe all that the bearer of 
this shall tell you, and also those two poor girls who 
have been immediately about my person ; they will 
tell you the truth, which I beg you to make public, as 
I fear that a very different interpretation will be 
given. Order a mass to be said for the deliverance 
and repose of my soul ; you know the place I mean — 
and let the churches in Spain remember me in their 
prayers. Keep the name of the bearer of this secret ; 
he has been a faithful servant to me. God grant you 
a long and happy life ! You will receive from me 
as a token of my remembrance, a diamond, which I 
have held very dear, having been given to me by the 



392 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

late Duke of Norfolk as a pledge of his troth, and I 
have always worn it as such : keep it for my sake. I 
do not know if I shall have leave to make a will. I 
have applied for it, but they have all my money. 
God be with you ! Excuse what I write in sorrow 
and trouble, not having any one to help me to make 
my rough draughts, and to write for me. If you 
cannot read my hand, the bearer will read it for you, 
or my ambassador, whom he knows. 

" Among other accusations, that of Criton ( (Brigh- 
ton) is one which I know nothing of. I fear greatly 
that Nau and Pasquier have hastened my death, 
having kept some papers, and they are men who will 
turn on any side for their own advantage. Would to 
God Fontenay had been here ! He is a young man of 
great knowledge and resolution. 

" Once more, adieu. I recommend to you my poor, 
and henceforth destitute servants, and pray for my 
soul. 

" From Fotheringay, Wednesday, the 23d of No- 
vember, 1586. I recommend to you the poor Bishop 
of Ross, who will be shortly destitute. 

" Your very obliging and perfect friend, 

" Mary K." 

THE QUEEN OF SCOTS TO THE DUKE OF GUISE. 

" My good cousin — You whom I hold most dear in 
the world, I bid you farewell, being on the point of 
being put to death, by an unjust judgment, such a 
one as never any belonging to our race yet suffered, 
much less one of my rank. But praise God, my good 
cousin : for, situated as I have been, I was useless to 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 893 

the world in the cause of God and his church ; but I 
hope that my death will bear witness of my constancy 
in the faith, and my readiness to die for the support 
and restoration of the Catholic church in this unfor- 
tunate island. And though executioner never yet 
dipped his hand in our blood, be not ashamed, my 
friend; for the judgment of these heretics and ene- 
mies of the church, and who have no jurisdiction over 
me, a free Queen, is profitable before God and the 
children of his church, which, had I not adhered to, 
this stroke had been spared me. All those of our 
house have been persecuted by this sect ; witness, 
your good father, with whom I hope to be received in 
mercy by the just Judge. 

" I recommend, then, to you, all my poor servants, 
the discharge of my debts, and the founding of some 
annual obit for my soul ; not at your expense, but to 
make such solicitation and arrangements as shall be 
requisite to fulfill my intentions, which you will be 
informed of by my poor, disconsolate servants, eye- 
witnesses of this, my last tragedy. 

" May God prosper your wife, children, brothers 
and cousins, and especially our head, my good 
brother and cousin, and all belonging to him ! May 
the blessing of God, and that which I should give to 
my own children, be upon yours, whom I commend to 
God, not less sincerely than my own unfortunate and 
deluded son ! You will receive tokens (rings) from 
me to remind you to have prayers said for the soul of 
your poor cousin, destitute of all aid and counsel but 
that of God, who gives me strength and courage to 
withstand alone so many wolves howling after me ; to 
God be the glory ! Believe, in particular, a person 



394: MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

who will give you, in my name, a ruby ring, for I as- 
sure you, upon my conscience, that this person will 
tell you the truth agreeably to my desire, especially 
as to what concerns my poor servants, and the share 
of each. I recommend to you this person for her sin- 
cerity and honesty, in order that she may be put into 
some good place. I have chosen her as being the 
most impartial, and as one who will most simply re- 
port my commands. I beg you not to let it be known 
that she has said anything to you in private, for envy 
might injure her. 

" I have suffered much for the last two years and 
upward, but have not been able to inform you of it 
for an important reason. God be praised for all 
things, and may he give you grace to persevere in the 
service of his church, so long as you live, and may 
that honor never depart from our race, that all of us, 
both males and females, may be ready to shed our 
blood in the defence of the faith, regardless of all 
other worldly interests ! For my own part, I think 
myself born, both on the father's and the mother's 
side, to offer up my blood for it, and have no inten- 
tion to degenerate. May Jesus, crucified for us, and 
all the holy martyrs, render us, by their intercession, 
worthy of the free-will offering of our bodies for his 
glory. From Fotheringay, Thursday, this 24th Nov. 

" Thinking to degrade me, they took down my can- 
opy; and my keeper afterward came and offered to 
write to the Queen, saying that this act had not been 
done by her command, but by the advice of some of 
her council. I showed them, on the said canopy, in 
place of my coat of arms, the cross of my Saviour. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 395 

You will be informed of all that was said ; they have 
since been more indulgent. 

" Your affectionate cousin and perfect friend, 

" Mary R, of Scotland, 
" Dowager of France." 

Whether the touching communication was received 
or not, is unknown. 

A sonnet written with the violent close of existence 
in view, is melancholy evidence of poetical genius, 
which, through years of suffering, had seldom 
breathed in verse the captive's moan. 

" Alas ! what am I ? and in what estate ? 

A wretched corse, bereaved of its heart ; 

An empty shadow lost, unfortunate ; 

To die is now in life my only part. 

Foes to my greatness, let your envy rest ; 

In me no taste for grandeur now is found, 

Consumed by grief, with heavy ills opprest, 

Your wishes and desires will soon be crowned. 

And you, my friends, who still have held me dear, 

Bethink you, that when health and heart are fled, 

And every hope of future good is dead, 

Tis time to wish our sorrows ended here, 

And that this punishment on earth is given, 

That I may live to endless bliss in heaven."* 

* Written on a large sheet of paper. 

" Que suis- je, helas ? et de quoy sert la vie ? 
Je*n suis fors qu'un corps prive de cceur, 
Un ombre vain, un object de malheur, 
Qui n'a plus rien que de mourir en vie. 
Plus ne me portez — O ennemis, d'envie : 
Qui n'a plus l'esprit a la grandeur, 
Votre ire en bref devoir assouvir. 
Et vous amis, qui m'avez tenu chere, 
Souvenez-vous que sans coeur, et sans sante 



396 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

She also sent her last message to Elizabeth, in af- 
fecting language, breathing the crushed ambition of a 
long life — regard for a form which had been the ad- 
miration of the world — and solicitude for those, how- 
ever humble, who were faithful unto death : 

" Madam, I return thanks to God with all my 
heart, that it pleases him to put an end, through your 
decree, to the weary pilgrimage of my life. I do not 
ask that it may be prolonged, having had but too long 
experience of its bitterness. I only beseech your 
majesty that, as I cannot look for any kindness from 
certain zealous ministers who hold the highest rank 
in the government of England, I may receive from 
you alone, and not from others, the following favors : 

" In the first place, I ask that, as it is not allowable 
for me to expect a burial in England, according to the 
Catholic solemnities practised by the ancient kings, 
your ancestors and mine, and as in Scotland dishonor 
and violence has been done to the ashes of my progen- 
itors — as soon as my enemies shall be satiated with 
my innocent blood, my body may be carried by my 
servants into some godly land, especially France, 
where the bones of the Queen, my honored mother, 
repose, in order that this poor body, which has 
never known repose since it has been united to my 
soul, may at length find peace when separated from it. 

" Secondly, I pray your majesty, from the appre- 
hension I feel for the tyranny of those to whose 
power you have abandoned me, that I may not be exe- 
cuted in any secret place, but in the sight of my 

Je ne sgaurois aucun bon oeuvre faire ; 
Souliaitez done fin de calamite. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 39? 

domestics and other persons who may be able to bear 
witness to my faith and obedience in the true church, 
and to defend the remainder of my life and my last 
breath from the false reports which my enemies may 
spread. 

" Thirdly, I request that my domestics, who have 
served me through so many troubles, and with so 
much fidelity, may be allowed to retire freely wher- 
ever they may wish to go, and to enjoy the small 
presents which my poverty has bequeathed them in 
my will. 

" I conjure you, madam, by the blood of Jesus 
Christ, by our relationship, by the memory of Henry 
VII., our common parent, and by the title of 
Queen, which I still bear till death, not to refuse 
these my reasonable requests, and to give me assur- 
ance of that by a line under your hand ; and there- 
upon I will die, as I have lived, your affectionate 
sister and prisoner." 

Whether the touching communication was received 
or not, is unknown. 

The condemnation of Mary had aroused adjacent 
kingdoms, and startled the civilized world. Ambas- 
sadors from Scotland and France arrived at the court 
of England, to intercede with expostulations and 
threats in behalf of the desolate princess. Elizabeth 
answered that mercy to Mary Stuart would be cru- 
elty to herself ; and to make a demonstration of popu- 
lar feeling in the face of foreign remonstrance, she 
directed the sentence of the court to be proclaimed in 
the streets of London. The Lord Mayor, Earl of 
Pembroke, and the aldermen, attended the ceremony. 



398 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

The last tones of the herald's voice were lost in ac- 
clamations and ringing of bells, while bonfires illu- 
mined at night the rocking towers of every belfry 
in the capital. For twenty-four hours these rejoic- 
ings continued. The ambassadors of Henry III., of 
France, anticipating the immediate execution of 
Mary, interposed a petition for a postponement of the 
fatal blow. 

In the meantime, M. de Bellievere, one of the en- 
voys, embarked for France, and Elizabeth sent to 
confront him, a special messenger, instructed to re- 
sent the King's bold interference, and explain her 
own acts. 

James VI. manifested no very intense interest in 
his mother's deliverance. Ruled by her political pol- 
icy of grasping power, at all hazards, he preferred 
the alliance with Elizabeth to Mary's life. He con- 
gratulated the Queen of England upon the detection 
of the late conspiracy ; and said respecting the pris- 
oner, that she had broken her promises to Elizabeth, 
and must drink the draught she had " brewed for 
herself." But when it was known that the sentence 
of death was impending, the King, who had not an- 
ticipated this result, sent William Keith with a filial, 
menacing message to the court of England. Upon 
receiving a haughty reply from Elizabeth, James 
cowered and simply pressed the demand that his 
mother be no more than securely confined. The 
choice of peace with allies instead of yielding to the 
impulses of strongest natural affection, awakened the 
indignation of his subjects, and murmurs of disap- 
proval were heard whenever he crossed the threshold 
of his palace. Elizabeth continued undecided. Eu- 




Queen Elizabeth being urged to sign the death warrant of Mary Stuart. 

Page 399. Mary Queen of Scots. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 399 

mors of new conspiracies were abroad ; a prisoner in 
Newgate had proposed to D'Estroppes, member of the 
French embassy, if he would pay him one hundred 
and twenty crowns, which would release the debt 
that incarcerated him, to assassinate the Queen. The 
offer was promptly spurned, but accusations which 
were made by a disappointed conspirator, Stafford, 
involved the ambassadors of Henry in serious trouble. 
Elizabeth became sad and gloomy ; amusements were 
abandoned, and she was overheard repeating to her- 
self the Latin quotation: "Aut fer aut; ne feriare 
firi." " Strike or be struck ; if you would not be 
struck, strike." 

The crisis had come when Elizabeth must take the 
responsibility of final action on Mary's fate. Febru- 
ary 1st, 1587, Secretary Davison, who was summoned 
to her presence, appeared before her with the war- 
rant of execution, drawn by High Treasurer Hum- 
phrey. She read it carefully, asked for a pen, and 
signed the instrument of death. She forbade a pub- 
lic execution, and ordered that it should take place 
in the great hall of the castle, instead of the open 
court; intimating strongly that Paulet, the keeper, 
and his companions, might have relieved her of the 
burden of deciding the matter, had they been anxious 
to serve her. The same day, Davison and Walsing- 
ham wrote to Paulet the following : 

" After our cordial greetings, we perceive, from 
some words lately spoken by her majesty, that she 
remarks in you a want of diligence and of zeal in 
not having discovered of yourselves (without other 
instigation) some mode of putting that Queen to 
death, considering the great danger to which her 



400 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

majesty is exposed, as long as the said Queen is in 
life. ISTot to speak of the want of affection towards 
her, her majesty remarks further, that you do not 
consider your own safety, or rather the preservation 
of religion, of the public weal, and of the prosperity 
of your country, as reason and policy require you to 
do. Your conscience would be peaceful before God, 
and your reputation clear before the world, since you 
have taken the solemn oath of the Association, and 
since, moreover, the facts charged against that Queen 
have been clearly proved. Her majesty, therefore, 
feels great displeasure at men who profess attach- 
ment to her, as you do, thus failing in their duty, and 
seeking to throw on her the weight of this affair, well 
knowing, as you do, her repugnance to the shedding 
of blood, particularly that of a person of her sex and 
her rank, and so near a relative. 

" We perceive that these considerations trouble her 
majesty greatly, who, we can assure you, has repeat- 
edly declared that if she did not feel a greater con- 
cern for the dangers which her faithful subjects and 
her good servants run, than for those which threaten 
herself, she would never consent that this Queen's 
blood should be shed. We think it very necessary to 
inform you of these sentiments expressed TLOt long 
since by her majesty, and to submit them to your 
good judgment, and so we recommend you to the 
Almighty's protection." 

Paulet received this appeal to unscrupulous loy- 
alty, February 2d, at evening; though an unfeeling 
jailer, he was above cowardly murder, and wrote in 
reply : 

" Having received your letter of yesterday at five 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 401 

o'clock in the afternoon of this day, I could not fail 
to send you an answer with all possible dispatch, as 
you direct. I send it you in all the bitterness which 
my heart feels at being so unfortunate as to see the 
day when, by the injunctions of my most gracious 
sovereign, I am required to commit an act which God 
and the laws forbid. My property, my place, and 
my life are at her majesty's disposal, and I am ready 
to surrender them to-morrow, if such is her good 
pleasure, acknowledging that I hold them from her 
sole and gracious favor ; I do not desire to enjoy them 
but with the good will of her highness. But God 
preserve me from making such a pitiable shipwreck 
of my conscience, or leaving so foul a stain on my 
posterity, as to shed blood without the authority of 
the law, and without a public act. I hope her ma- 
jesty, with her accustomed clemency, will take my 
loyal answer in good part." 

Elizabeth, upon reading this spirited and manly 
letter, uttered expressions of scorn ; and had no other 
alternative than to let penalty reach its illustrious 
mark. 

With the papers properly signed and sealed, the 
members of the privy council proceeded to the con- 
cluding deed in the slow destruction of a beautiful 
and powerless Queen. Mary was in awful suspense, 
fearing especially secret assassination. February 
5th, Robert Beale, Elizabeth's envoy to James VI., 
accompanied by the London executioner, arrived at 
Eotheringay Castle. He acquainted the castellans 
with his mission, and then hastened to the Earls of 
Kent and Shrewsbury, who were to see the sentence 
executed on the morning of the 8th. About noon of 



4:02 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

the 7th, all the actors in the approaching scene of 
blood, were assembled in the castle. Alarm seized 
the servants, as the signs of the dreaded consumma- 
mation gathered about them. Mary was on her 
couch in bodily weakness and pain. The Earls re- 
quested to see her; and she replied, though ill, if it 
were deemed necessary, she would meet them. When 
told delay was not permitted, she dressed herself, and 
seated by a small work table, calmly awaited their 
coming. Her limited retinue was around her. The 
grand marshal of England, followed by Beale and the 
jailers, entered the room uncovered and bowing, and 
told the mournful captive that the sentence delayed 
more than two months, could no longer be deferred; 
that Elizabeth was forced to the execution of it by the 
clamor of her subjects, and they had come to do her 
will. 

Mary serenely listened, and then desired Beale to 
read the warrant for the execution : 

Warrant for the Execution of the Queen of Scots. 

" Elizabeth, by the grace of God, Queen of England, France, 
and Ireland, &c. To our trusty and well beloved cousins, 
George, Earl of Shrewsbury, Earl Marshal of England, Henry, 
Earl of Kent, Henry, Earl of Derby, George, Earl of Cumber- 
land, and Henry, Earl of Pembroke, greeting, &c. 

" Whereas sithence the sentence given by you, and others 
of our Council, Nobility and Judges, against the Queen of 
Scots, by the name of Mary, Daughter of James the Fifth, 
Lite King of Scots, commonly called the Queen of Scots, and 
Dowager of France, as is to you well known ; all the States 
in the last Parliament assembled did not only deliberately, by 
great advice, allow and approve the same sentence as just and 
honorable, but also with all humbleness and earnestness pos- 
sible, at sundry times require, solicit and press us to direct 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 403 

such further execution against her Person, as they did ad- 
judge her to have duly deserved ; adding thereunto, that the 
forbearing thereof was, and would be daily, certain and un- 
doubted danger, not only unto our own life, but also unto 
themselves, their posterity, and the public estate of this 
Realm, as well for the cause of the Gospel and true Religion 
of Christ, as for the peace of the whole Realm ; whereupon 
we did, although the same were with some delay of time, 
publish the same Sentence by our Proclamation, yet hitherto 
have forborn to give direction for the further satisfaction of 
the aforesaid most earnest requests, made by our said States 
of our Parliament ; whereby we do daily understand, by all 
sorts of our loving subjects, both of our Nobility and Council, 
and also of the wisest, greatest, and best devoted of all sub- 
jects of inferior degrees, how greatly and deeply, from the 
bottom of their hearts they are grieved and afflicted, with 
daily, yea hourly fears of our life, and thereby consequently 
with a dreadful doubt and expectation of the ruin of the 
present happy and godly estate of this Realm, if we should 
forbear the further final execution, as it is deserved, and 
neglect their general and continued requests, prayers, coun- 
sels and advices, and thereupon, contrary to our natural 
disposition in such case, being overcome with the evident 
weight of their counsels, and their daily intercessions, im- 
parting such a necessity, as appeareth, directly tending to 
the safety not only of ourself, but also to the weal of our 
whole Realm ; we have condescended to suffer justice to 
take place, and for the execution thereof upon the special 
trusty experience and confidence which we have of your 
loyalties, faithfulness ajid love, both toward our Person and 
the safety thereof, and also to your native countries, whereof 
you are most noble and principal Members, we do will, and 
by Warrant hereof do authorize you, as soon as you shall 
have time convenient, to repair to our Castle of Fotheringay, 
where the said Queen of Scots is in custody of our right trusty 
and faithful servant and Counsellor, Sir Amyas Powlet, 
Knight : and then taking her into your charge, to cause by 
your commandment execution to be done upon her person, 
in the presence of yourselves, and the aforesaid Sir Amyas 
Powlet, and of such other officers of justice as you shall com- 



404: MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

mand to attend upon you for that purpose ; and the same to 
be done in such manner and form, and at such time and place, 
and by such persons, as to five, four, or three of you shall be 
thought by your discretions convenient, notwithstanding any 
Law, Statute, or Ordinance to the contrary : And these our 
Letters Patents, sealed with our Great Seal of England, shall 
be to you, and every of you, and to all persons that shall be 
present, or that shall be by you commanded to do anything 
appertaining to the aforesaid Execution, a full, sufficient 
Warrant, and discharge forever. And further, we are also 
pleased and contented, and hereby we do will, command, and 
authorize our Chancellor of England, at the requests of you 
all and every of you, the duplicate of our Letters Patents, to 
be to all purposes made, dated, and sealed with our Great 
Seal of England, as these Presents now are. 

"In witness whereof, we have caused these our Letters to 
be made Patents. Given at our Manor of Greenwich, the 1st 
day of February, in the twenty-ninth year of our Reign." 

When the reading was finished, Mary made the 
sign of the cross, and said : 

" God be praised for the news you bring me. I 
could receive none better, for it announces to me the 
conclusion of my miseries, and the grace which God 
has granted me to die for the honor of his name, and 
of his church, Catholic, apostolic, and Roman. I 
did not expect such a happy end, after the treatment 
I have suffered and the dangers to which I have been 
exposed for nineteen years in this country — I, born 
a Queen, the daughter of a king, the grand-daughter 
of Henry VIL, the near relation of the Queen of 
England, Queen Dowager of France, and who, 
though a free princess, have been kept in prison with- 
out legitimate cause, though I am subject to nobody, 
and recognize no superior in this world, excepting 
God," 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 405 

Mary laid her hand upon a Testament, and reaf- 
firmed that she never sought, nor consented to any 
means, of taking Elizabeth's life. When the Earl 
of Kent remarked that she swore on a Papal book, 
she immediately answered : " It is the book in which 
I believe ; do you suppose my oath would be more 
sincere if I took it on yours, in which I do not be- 
lieve ? ' : She spurned the proposal to send the Dean 
of Peterborough, a Protestant, to attend her in the 
dying hour, but desired her own confessor, who had 
been taken from her several days before. The wish 
was basely disregarded. She then asked when she 
was to die ; the Earl of Shrewsbury answered, " To- 
morrow, madam, about 8 o'clock in the morning." 

The earls departed, and Mary's servants crowded 
about her, weeping with breaking hearts. She soon 
after partook of an early supper, and called her at- 
tendants to the apartment. Pouring out wine, she 
drank to them, and with expressions of warm affec- 
tion, asked from them a similar pledge of love. They 
fell on their knees, and poured out their tears afresh, 
as the last libation upon the altar of fidelity. They 
besought her to pardon all offences. She assured 
them of free forgiveness, and hoped they would ex- 
tend the same charity to her. 

She then retired to spend the night in writing and 
prayer. Near the dawn of day she completed her 
will, which ran as follows: 

" In tho name of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy 
Ghost. I, Mary, by the grace of God, Queen of Scotland and 
Dowager of France, being on the point of death, and not 
having any means of making my will, have myself committed 
these articles to writing, and I will and desire that they have 
the same force as if they were made in due form. 



406 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

" In the first place, I declare that I die in the Catholic, 
Apostolic, and Romish faith. First, I desire that a complete 
service be performed for my soul in the church of St. Denis, 
in France, and another at St. Peter's, at Rheims, where all 
my servants are to attend in such manner as they may be 
ordered to do, by those to whom I have given directions, and 
who are named herein. 

"Further, that an annual obit be founded for prayers for 
my soul, in perpetuity, in such place, and after such manner, 
as shall be deemed most convenient. 

" To furnish funds for this, I will that my houses at Fon- 
tainebleau be sold, hoping that the king will render me as- 
sistance, as I have requested him to do in my memorandum. 

" I will that my estate of Trespagny be kept by my cousin 
de Guize, for one of his daughters, if she should come to be 
married. In these quarters I relinquish half of the arrears 
due to me, or a part, on condition that the other be paid in 
order to be expended by my executors in perpetual alms. 

" To carry this into effect the better, the documents shall 
be looked out, and delivered according to the assignment for 
accomplishing this. 

" I will also that the money which may arise from my law- 
suit with Secondat be distributed as follows : 

"First, in the discharge of my debts and orders hereafter 
mentioned, and which are not yet paid ; in the first place, the 
two thousand crowns to Courle ; which I desire to be paid 
without any hesitation, they being a marriage portion, upon 
which neither Nau nor any other person has any claim, what- 
ever obligation he may hold, inasmuch as it is only fictitious, 
and the money is mine and not borrowed, whicli since I did 
but show him, and afterward withdrew it, and it was taken 
from me, with the rest, at Chartelay ; the which I gave him, 
provided he can recover it, agreeably to my promise, in pay- 
ment of the four thousand francs promised at my death, one 
thousand as a marriage portion for an own sister, and he 
having asked me for the rest for his expenses in prison. As 
to the payment of a similar sum to Nau, it is not obligatory, 
and, therefore, it has always been my intention that it should 
be paid last, and then only in case he should make it appear 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 407 

that he has not acted contrary to the condition upon which 
I gave it him, and to which my servants were witnesses. 

" As regards the twelve hundred crowns, which he has 
placed to my account, as having been borrowed by him for 
my use, six hundred of Beauregard, three hundred of Gervais, 
and the remainder from I know not whom, he must repay 
them out of his own money, and I must be quit, and my order 
annulled, as I have not received any part of it, consequently 
it must be still in his possession, unless he has paid it away. 
Be this as it may, it is necessary that this sum should revert 
to me, I have received nothing ; and in case it has not been 
paid away, I must have recourse to his property. I further 
direct, that Pasquier shall account for the moneys that he 
has expended and received by order of Nau, from the hands 
of the servants of Monsieur de Chasteauneuf , the French am- 
bassador. 

" Further, I will that my accounts be audited, and my 
treasurer paid. 

"Further, that the wages and sums due to my household, 
as well for the last as for the present year, be paid them 
before all other tilings, both wages and pensions, excepting 
the pensions of Nau and Courle, until it be ascertained what 
there is remaining, or whether they have merited any pensions 
from me, unless the wife of Courle be in necessity, or be ill 
treated on my account : the wages of Nau after the same 
manner. 

." I will that the two thousand four hundred francs which 
I have given to Jeanne Kenedy be paid to her in money, as 
it was stated in my first deed of gift, which done, the pension 
of Volly Douglas shall revert to me, which I give to Fontenay 
for services and expenses for which he has had no compensa- 
tion. 

" I will that the four thousand francs of that banker's be 
applied for and repaid ; I have forgotten his name, but the 
Bishop of Glascou will readily recollect it ; and if the first 
order be not honored, I desire that another may be given on 
the first money from Secondat. 

" The ten thousand francs which the ambassador haa 
received for me, I will that they be distributed among my 
servants who are now going away, viz. : 



408 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

■' First, two thousand francs to my physician. 

„ „ ,, Elizabeth Courle. 

„ „ „ Sebastian Paiges. 

„ „ „ Marie Paiges, my god- 

daughter. 
,, „ ,, Beauregard. 

A thousand francs to Gourgon. 
„ ,, Gervais. 

" Further, that out of the rest of my revenue, with re- 
mainder of Secondat's, and all other casualties, I will that 
five thousand francs be given to the foundling hospital of 
Rheims. 

" To my scholars, two thousand francs. 

" To four mendicants such sums as my executors may think 
fit, according to the means in their hands. 

" Five hundred francs to the hospitals. 

" To Martin escuyer de cuisine, I give a thousand francs. 

" A thousand francs to Annibal, whom I recommend to my 
cousin de Guyse, his god-father, to place in some situation, 
for his life, in his service. 

" I leave five hundred francs to Nicholas, and five hundred 
francs for his daughters, when they marry. 

"I leave five hundred francs to Robin Hamilton and beg 
my son to take hiin and Monsieur de Glascou, or the Bishop 
of Rosse. 

" I leave to Didier his registership, subject to the approba- 
tion of the king. 

" I give five hundred francs to Jean Lander, and beg my 
cousin of Guyse, or of Mayne, to take him into their service, 
and Messieurs de Glascou and de Rosse to see him provided 
for. I will that his father be paid his wages, and leave him 
five hundred francs. 

" I will that one thousand francs be paid to Gourgeon, for 
money and other things with which he supplied me in my 
necessity. 

" I will that if Bourgoing should perform the journey 
agreeably to the vow which he made for me to Saint 
Nicholas, that fifteen hundred francs be paid to him for 
that purpose. 

"I leave, according to my slender means, six thousand 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS* 409 

francs to the Bishop of Glascou, and three thousand to him 
of Rosse. 

" And I leave the gift of casualties and reserved seignorial 
rights to my god-son, the son of Monsieur de Ruisseau. 

" I give three hundred francs to Laurenz. 

" Also, three hundred francs to Suzanne. 

" And leave ten thousand francs among the four persons 
who have been my sureties, and to Varmy, the solicitor. 

" I will that the money arising from the furniture which 
I have ordered to be sold in London, shall go to defray the 
travelling expenses of my servants to France. 

" My coach I leave to carry the ladies, and the horses, which 
they can sell, or do what they like with. 

"There remains about three hundred crowns due to Bour- 
going for the wages of past years, which I desire may be paid 
him. 

" I leave two thousand francs to Melvin, my steward. 

" I appoint my cousin, the Duke of Guise, principal executor 
of my will. 

" After him, the Archbishop of Glascou, the Bishop of Rosse, 
and Monsieur du Ruisseau, my chancellor. 

" I desire that Le Preau may, without obstacle, hold his 
two prebends. 

"I recommend Marie Paiges, my god-daughter, to my 
cousin, Madame de Guise, and beg her to take her into her 
service, and my aunt de Saint ******* 

Memorandum — Of the last requests which I make to the 

King. 

"To cause to be paid me all that is due to me of my 
pensions, as also of money advanced by the late queen, 
my mother, in Scotland, for the service of the king, my 
father-in-law, in those parts ; that at least an annual obit 
may be founded for my soul, and that the alms and the little 
endowments promised me, may be carried into effect. 

" Further, that he may be pleased to grant me the benefit 
of my dowry for one year after my death, to recompense my 
servants. 

" Further, that he may be pleased to allowjthem their wages 
and pensions during their lives, as was done to the officers of 



410 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

Queen Alienor. Further, I entreat him to take my physician 
into his service, according to his promise to consider him as 
recommended. 

" Further, that my almoner may be replaced in his profes- 
sion, and for my sake have some trifling benefice conferred 
upon him, so that he may pray to God for my soul, during the 
rest of his life. 

" Further, that Didier, an old officer of my household, 
whom I have recompensed by a registership, may be per- 
mitted to enjoy it for his life, being already far advanced in 
years. Written on the morning of my death, this Wednes- 
day, 8th of February, 1587. 

" Signed, Mary Queen. " 

Nothing, perh aps, could give a better illustration 
of the clearness of Mary Stuart's intellect on the 
verge of old age, and the tranquillity of her spirit in 
view of death, than the preparation of this minute 
document. Officers of the realm were sleeping with- 
in those silent walls ; King James was reposing in 
Holyrood Palace ; the scaffold was the place of her 
next appearing before men ; and yet she moved her 
facile pen without trembling or wandering thought. 
Depositing her papers in a casket, she applied her- 
self to preparation for the block, and remarked, she 
must think only of appearing before God. 



CHAPTER X. 

The almoner of Mary, according to her request, 
spent the midnight hours in prayer, and sent her his 
absolution. She read in the Lives of the Saints, and 
pausing with emotion over the story of the penitent 
thief, remarked : " He was a great sinner ; but not so 
great as I am. I beseech our Lord, in memory of hi3 
passion, to have remembrance and mercy of me, as 
he had of him, in the hour of death." 

She then sought repose, to obtain strength for the 
coming trial of her courage and immortal hopes. 
Amid the tears and prayers of her women, the illus- 
trious prisoner slept. As the beams of morning stole 
through the guarded windows upon her pale and 
mournful features, a smile of martyr-triumph passed 
over them. Whatever her true rank in the scale of 
moral being, she felt herself to be an offering to God 
in the service of the Catholic church. Rising in this 
twilight of opening day, she said she had only two 
hours to live; and immediately commenced prepara- 
tions for the scaffold. Selecting a golden-fringed 
handkerchief for the bandage to cover her eyes, she 
arrayed her form in solemn magnificence. The ser- 
vants were gathered about her — the will read, and 
the gifts of affection committed to their care; while 
she lavished on them jewelry, and purses of coin, 
adding expressions of consolation to alleviate the 
grief of separation. 

Withdrawing from the weeping company, she went 

411 



412 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

to the oratory, where she was accustomed to how with 
her spiritual counselor, before he was unfeelingly 
taken from her. The supplications of the dying were 
falling from her lips, when the summons of her exe- 
cutioners disturbed the earnest worshiper. She de- 
sired to finish her devotions, and was allowed to con- 
tinue them. In a few moments the knocking was 
renewed, and the sheriff entered. Advancing to 
Mary, who had not moved, he lifted his white wand, 
and said, " Madam, the lords await you, and have 
sent me to you." She rose from her knees, and re- 
plied, " Yes, let us go." One of the attendants 
handed her an ivory crucifix from the altar; kissing 
the symbol, she ordered it to be carried before her to 
the place of execution. 

Leaning, in her weakness, on two of her servants, 
she reached the limits of her own apartments, when 
they, with great delicacy of feeling, fell into the pro- 
cession of mourners, and left her to the servitors of 
the jailer. At the staircase which led to the hall of 
death below, the servants were commanded to pause ; 
entreaties to follow the Queen were in vain; and 
rushing to her feet, they clung with sobs to her dress, 
until forcibly removed. Bearing in one hand a 
prayer-book, and the cross in the other, with serene 
and majestic mien she descended the steps, in her 
widow's apparel ; " A gown of dark crimson velvet 
with black satin corsage, from which chaplets and 
scapularies were suspended, and which was sur- 
mounted by a cloak of figured satin of the same color, 
with a long train lined with sable, a standing up 
collar and hanging sleeves. A white veil was thrown 
over her, reaching from her head to her feet." 




Maiy Stuart going to her execution.— Page 412. 

Mary Queen of Scots. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 413 

When she entered the hall Andrew Melvil, her 
maitre dliotel, met her to bid her farewell. Kneel- 
ing with uncontrollable grief, Mary embraced him, 
and with words of gratitude for his fidelity, charged 
him to give a true record of what was transpiring, to 
James VI., her son. He answered, " It will be the 
most sorrowful message I ever carried, to announce 
that the Queen, my sovereign and dear mistress, is 
dead." With a faint smile she said, " Thou shouldst 
rather rejoice, good Melvil, that Mary Stuart has ar- 
rived at the close of her misfortunes. Thou knowest 
that this world is indeed full of troubles and misery. 
Bear these tidings — that I die firm in my religion, a 
true Catholic, a true Scotch-woman, a true French- 
woman. May God forgive those who have sought my 
death. The Judge of the secret thoughts and actions 
of men knows, that I have always desired the union 
of England and Scotland. Commend me to my son, 
and tell him I have never done anything that could 
prejudice the welfare of the kingdom, or his quality 
as a King, nor derogate in any respect from our sov- 
ereign prerogative." 

Turning to the Earls of Shrewsbury and Kent, she 
requested pardon for her secretary, Curie, and that 
the servants might attend her to the scaffold. The 
earls expressing a fear of trouble on account of their 
wild sorrow, and that they might attempt to dip their 
handkerchiefs in her blood: she replied: " My lords, 
I pledge my word that they will do nothing of the 
kind. Alas! poor souls, they will be gratified at 
taking leave of me ; and I am sure your mistress, be- 
ing a virgin Queen, would not refuse to allow another 
Queen to have her women about her at the moment 



414 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

of her death. She cannot have given you such rigor- 
ous orders. You would grant me more than that 
even if I were a person of lower rank; and yet, my 
lords, you know that I am your Queen's cousin. You 
certainly will not refuse me this last request. My 
poor girls desire no more than to see me die." 

The dying wish was granted, and she selected Bur- 
goin, her physician; Gorion, her apothecary; Ger- 
vais, her surgeon ; Didier, her butler ; Jean Kennedy 
and Elizabeth Curie. Melvil bore the train of the 
Queen's dress. The scaffold was two feet and a half 
high, twelve feet square, and covered with black cloth. 
The chair, cushion on which she was to kneel, and 
the block, were all overlaid with the same sombre 
drapery. With as much dignity, repose of manner, 
and gracefulness, as though ascending a throne, Mary 
stepped upon the scaffold, and sat down in the chair 
of death. 

On her right hand were seated the earls; on her 
left stood the sheriff; the two executioners were in 
front, dressed in black velvet, and the servants lined 
the walls; while two hundred people from the adja- 
cent country, crowded the barred area of the silent 
hall. It was a sad and moving sight. The fallen 
Queen, with the outline of fading beauty still visi- 
ble, around whose fate in that gloomy castle there was 
a world-wide interest, sat calmly beholding the 
throng, and awaiting the fatal stroke. Beale then 
read the sentence, to which Mary listened unmoved. 

When it was concluded, she made the sign of the 
cross, and said in clear accents: 

" My lords, I am a Queen born, a sovereign prin- 
cess, not subject to the laws, a near relation of the 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 415 

Queen of England, and her lawful heiress. After 
having been long and unjustly detained prisoner in 
this country, where I have endured much pain and 
evil, though nobody had any right over me, being 
now r , through the strength and under the power of 
men, ready to forfeit my life, I thank God for per- 
mitting me to die for my religion, and in presence of 
a company who will bear witness that, just before my 
death, I protested, as I have always done, both in 
private and in public, that I never contrived any 
means of putting the Queen to death, nor consented 
to anything against her person." 

She added again her denial of enmity tow r ard any, 
and of designs against Elizabeth. Engaging in fer- 
vent prayer, the Protestant dean, Dr. Fletcher, inter- 
rupted her, and exhorted her to prepare to die. Re- 
jecting his offices, she told him that, firm in the Cath- 
olic faith, she expected to shed her blood for it. He 
urged her to repent, when Mary indignantly bade 
him be silent. The earls then said they wished to 
offer prayer in her behalf. 

She answered, " My lords, if you will pray with 
me, I will even from my heart thank you, and think 
myself greatly favored by you ; but to join in prayer 
with you in your manner, who are not of one religion 
with me, it were a sin, and I will not." Thus did the 
Reformation battle with Papacy on the platform of 
bloody penalty. The Dean proceeded with the fol- 
lowing eloquent petition : 

11 Oh, most gracious God and merciful father, who. accord- 
ing to the multitude of thy mercies, dost so put away the sins 
of them that truly repent, that thou rememherest them no 
more, open, we beseech thee, thine eyes of mercy, and behold 



416 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

this person appointed unto death, whose eyes of understand- 
ing and spiritual light, albeit thou hast hitherto shut up, that 
the glorious beams of thy favor in Jesus Christ do not shine 
upon her, but is possessed with blindness and ignorance of 
heavenly things (a certain token of heavy displeasure, if thy 
unspeakable mercy do not triumph against thy judgment) 
yet, O Lord our God, impute not, we beseecli thee, unto her 
those her offences, which separate her from thy mercy ; 
and, if it may stand with thine everlasting purpose and good 
pleasure, O Lord, grant unto us, we beseech thee, tins mercy, 
which is about thy throne, that the eyes of her heart may be 
enlightened, that she may be converted unto thee ; and grant 
her also, if it be thy blessed will, the heavenly comfort of thy 
Holy Spirit, that she may taste and see how gracious the Lord 
is. Thou hast no pleasure, good Lord, in the death of a sin- 
ner, and no man shall praise thy name in the pit ; renew in 
her, O Lord, we most humbly beseech thy majesty, whatso- 
ever is corrupt in her, either by her own frailty, or by the 
malice of the ghostly enemy ; visit her, O Lord, if it be thy 
good pleasure, with thy saving health, as thou didst the of- 
fender at the side of thy cross, with this consolation : This 
day shalt thou be with me in Paradise. Say unto her soul, as 
thou didst unto thy servant David, I am thy salvation : so 
shall thy mercy, being more mighty, be more magnified. 
Grant these mercies, O Lord, to us thy servants, to the in- 
crease of thy kingdom, and glory at this time. And further, 
O most merciful Father, preserve, we most humbly beseech 
thy majesty, in long and honorable peace and safety, Eliza- 
beth thy servant, our most natural sovereign lady and queen ; 
let them be ashamed and confounded, O Lord, that seek after 
her soul ; let them be turned backward and put to confusion 
that wish her evil ; and strengthen still, Lord, we pray thee, 
the hand and balance of justice amongst us, by her gracious 
government ; so shall we both now and ever, rest under thy 
faithfulness and truth, as under our shield and buckler, and 
bless thy name and magnify thy mercy, which livest and 
reignest one most gracious God, for ever and ever. Amen." 

Mary did not heed the Dean, but bowed in devotion 
till he ceased, when, records a spectator : 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 417 

" She rose, and kneeled downe agayne, praying in English, 
for Christe's afflicted church, an end of hir troubles, for hir 
sonne, and for the Queen's majestye ; to God for forgiveness 
of the sinns of them in this islande : Shee forgave hir 
ennemyes with all hir harte, that had longe sought hir blood. 
This done, she desired all saintes to make intercession for hir 
to the Saviour of the worlde, Jesus Christ. Then she began 
to kiss hir crucifix, and to cross hirself , saying these wordes : 
' Even as thy amies, oh, Jesus Christ, were spredd heer upon 
the cross, so receive me into the armes of mercye.' Then 
the two executioners kneeled downe unto hir, desiring hir to 
forgive them hir death, Shee answered, " I forgive yow with 
all my harte. For I hope this death shall give an end to all 
my troubles.' They, with hir two weomen helping, began to 
disroabe hir, and then shee layde the crucifix upon the stoole 
One of the executioners took from her neck the Agnus Dei, 
and shee layde hold of it, saying, she would give it to one of 
hir weomen, and, withal, told the executioner that he should 
have monye for it. Then they took off her chayne. Sliee 
made hirself unready with a kinde of gladness, and smiling, 
putting on a payer of sleeves with her own handes, which 
the twoo executioners before had rudely put off, and with 
such speed, as if shee had longed to be gone out of the 
worlde. 

" During the disroabing of this queen, shee never altered 
hir countenance, but smiling sayde, shee never had such 
groomes before to make hir unreadye, nor ever did putt of 
hir cloathes before such a companye. At lengthe unattyred 
and unapparrelled to hir petticoat and kirtle, the two weomen 
burst out into a great and pittiful shrieking, crying and 
lamentation, crossed themselves and prayed in Lattine. The 
queen turned towards them : ' Ne cry vous, fay preye pur 
vous: ' and so crossed, and kissed them and bad them pray 
for hir. 

" Then with a smiling countenance shee turned to her men 
servants, Melvin and the rest, crossed them, badd them far- 
well, and pray for her to the last. 

"One of the weomen having a Corpus Christi cloathe, 
lapped it upp three corner wise, and kissed it, and put it over 
the face of hir queen, and pynned it fast upon the caule of 

27 



418 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

hir head. Then the two weomen departed. The queen 
kneeled downe upon the cushion resolutely, and, without any 
token of feare of death, sayde allowde in Lattin the psalme, 
In te domine, confido. Then groaping for the block, she 
layde down hir head, putting hir cheane over her back with 
bothe her handes, which, holding their still, had been cut off, 
had they not been espyed. 

" Then she layde hirself upon the blocke most quietly, and 
stretching out hir armes, cryed out : In manus tuas, domine 
commendo spiritum menm, three or four tyrues. 

" Att last, while one of the executioners held hir streightly 
with one of his handes, the other gave two stroakes with an 
axe before he did cutt of hir head. 

" Shee made very smale noyse, no part stirred from the 
place where shee laye. The executioners lifted upp the head 
and bad God save the Queen. Then hir dressinge of Lawne 
fell from hir head, which appeared as graye as if she had 
byn thre score and ten yeares olde. Hir face much altred, 
hir lipps stirred upp and down almost a quarter of an hower 
after hir head was cut off. Then sayde Mr. Deane : ' So perish 
all the Queen's ennemyes.' The Earl of Kent camme to the 
dead body, and with a lower voice sayde, ' Such end happen 
to all the Queen's and Gospell's ennemyes.' One of the 
executioners espyed hir little dogg which was crept under 
hir cloathes, which would not be gotten fourth but with force, 
and afterwardes would not departe from the dead corps, but 
camme and layde between hir head and shoulders ; a thing 
much noted. The dogg embrewed in her blood was carryed 
awaye and washed, as all things els were that had any blood, 
save those thinges which were burned. The executioners 
were sent awaye with mony for their fees, not having any 
one thyng that belonged unto hir. Afterwardes every one 
was commanded forth of the hall, saving the Sherife and his 
men, who carryed hir up into a great chamber made ready 
for the Surgeons to embalme hir, and there shee was em- 
balmed." 



The " things burned,'' were the golden cross, the 
chaplets suspended to her girdle, and the apparel in 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 419 

which she was beheaded, that they might not be kept 
as relics by her friends of like faith. 

The castle gates were closed, and none allowed to 
depart, until Henry Talbot, son of the Earl of Shrews- 
bury, was dispatched to Elizabeth with the account 
of the tragedy. He reached Greenwich, where Eliz- 
abeth then was, February 9th, 1587. Before sunset 
the news spread over London; the ringing of bells 
and illuminations proclaimed the wild and fanatical 
rejoicings of the populace. 

The funeral pageant is described by an eye-witness 
of the imposing ceremonies : 

FUNERAL AND INTERMENT OP MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS.* 

" On Sunday, the 30th of July, reckoning according to the 
new reformation of the calendar, the 8th of August, 1587, 
about eight o'clock in the evening, there cametoFotheringay 
Castle, a carriage drawn by four horses, attired in mourning, 
and covered with black velvet with the arms of Scotland, the 
carriage or coach covered in like manner all round with small 
banneroles, exhibiting partly the arms of Scotland, partly 
those of the house of An jou, from which the deceased husband 
of her majesty was descended. The king of the heralds 
having arrived with about twenty men on horseback, both 
gentlemen and others, and some servitors and lacqueys, all 
dressed in mourning, went up to the chamber where the 
corpse was, directed it to be carried down and put into the 
same carriage, which was done with all possible reverence, 
all bare-headed and in silence ; while this was doing, the 
servants, to whom no notice had been given, astonished at 
these preparations, were consulting among themselves whether 
they ought to follow the body to see what was going to be 
done with it, deeming that it was not their duty to let it be car- 
ried away without being accompanied by some of them,the said 

* There cannot be a doubt that this paper, written in French, 
proceeds from one who had belonged to the household of the 
Queen of Scots. 



420 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

king of the heralds went and explained to them the com- 
mission which he had received from his mistress, touching 
the interment of the body and the funeral which she had 
promised, for which he had been commanded to make ar- 
rangements, and to pay all the honors to the deceased that 
he could. Whereupon, wishing to comply with these direc- 
tions, and having already prepared many things necessary 
for this purpose, it was thought more expedient to remove 
the corpse that night, than to wait till the day fixed for its 
interment, which was the following Tuesday, as well on ac- 
count of the distance, which was about three French leagues 
from thence, and because the leaden coffin would be too 
heavy to be carried in state, and it could not take place on 
the day appointed, without collecting a great concourse of 
people, and producing confusion, or default of some kind ; 
and as the vault was already made, they proposed to deposit 
the body in it this night, and on the Taesday to perform 
the funeral obsequies with due ceremony, for the greater 
convenience ; and that it was advisable for some of them, 
such as they should think proper, to accompany the corpse, 
and to see what should be done with it, and that the rest of 
the servants should go thither next day to attend the funeral 
on the day appointed. 

** All being thus prepared, the corpse was carried out about 
ten o'clock at night, accompanied by the said herald and other 
English, with seven servants of her majesty, namely, Mon- 
sieur Melvin, Monsier Burgoin, Pierre Corion, Annibal Sto- 
nard, Jean Lander, and Nicolas de la Mare, preceded by men 
on foot bearing lighted torches, to give light on the road, and 
arrived about two in the morning at Peterbourg, which is a 
small town, not walled any more than the other towns of 

England, on the river, where has been built 

a very handsome church, the work of an ancient king of Eng- 
land named Peda.* Here, in the times of the Catholic reli- 

*** The present building of the Peterborough cathedral is 
the third church on this site. The first was founded by Peada, 
King of Mercia, in G56, as a Benedictine monastery, which 
afterwards became one of the most important of the English 
abbevs. This church was destroyed by the Danes in 870-3. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 421 

gion, there was an abbey of monks of St. Benedict, now erected 
into a bishopric— for all the abbeys have been suppressed — 
where canons officiate to their institution, in the same sort of 
dress and vestment as ours. 

" In this church was interred that good Queen Catherine, 
wife of the late King Henry VIII., on the left side within the 
choir, where there is still her monument, adorned with a 
canopy, with her armorial bearings. On the right side, exactly 
opposite, was made a grave, bricked all round, and of sufficient 
depth, wherein was deposited the corpse of her majesty in 
the two coffins. In the middle of the choir was erected a 
dome, resembling the chapelles ardents in France, excepting 
that it was covered with black velvet, garnished all over with 
the arms of Scotland, with bipartite banneroles, as it has been 
said. Within it was placed the representation, which was in 
the form of a bier covered with black velvet, and upon it a 
pillow of crimson velvet, on which was laid a crown. The 
church was hung with black cloth, from the door to the in- 
terior of the choir, sprinkled with the said armorial bearings. 

" On the arrival of the body, the bishop of the said town of 
Peterbourg, in his episcopal habit, but without mitre, crosier 
or cope, with the dean and some others in their canonicals, 
came to receive the body at the entrance of the church, and 
preceded it to the said grave, in which it was put in the pres- 
ence of all, without chanting or tolling, or saying a word; and 
then they deliberated about saying some customary prayers, 
but agreed to defer them till the day of the funeral. The 
workmen immediately set about making an arch of brick over 
the grave, which covered the whole, level with the ground, 
leaving only an aperture of about a foot and a half, through 
which might be seen what was within, and also for admitting 
the broken staves of the officers and the flags, which it is 
customary to put down at the funerals of sovereigns. 

" On Monday, the preparations were completed ; the rooms 
in which the banquet was to be held were hung, and the 
herald requested the servants who had come hither to look at 

The second was founded in 971 and burned down in 1116. 
The oldest part now standing is the choir, consecrated about 

1140."— BiEDEKER. 



422 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

and consider the whole, explaining how he intended to pro- 
ceed ; that if they saw anything wanting, anything that 
needed amending or correcting, whatever it might be, that 
they thought not proper, and it should be made to their satis- 
faction ; that such was the pleasure of his mistress, that 
nothing was to be spared ; and that if he had failed to obey 
these directions it would be his fault, wishing the whole to be 
done in the most honorable manner possible. Whereto 
answer was very coldly made, that it was not for them to 
find fault ; that his mistress and he were discreet enough to 
do what was right, as they had agreed, and that the whole 
was dependent on their pleasure. 

" The Queen of England had some days before sent cloth to 
make mourning for the servants of her majesty, as much as 
was necessary for the men to make a cloak apiece for Mon- 
sieur Melvin, Monsieur Bourgoin, and a gown for each of the 
women, but some of them declined it, making shift with their 
own dresses, which they had got made for mourning im- 
mediately after the death of the deceased, and as the head- 
dresses of the ladies and women were not according to the 
fashion of the country for mourning, a woman was sent on 
purpose to make others in their fashion, to be worn by them 
on the day of the funeral, and to be theirs afterward ; so 
anxious was that sweet Elizabeth to have it believed that she 
was sorry for the death of her majesty, that she furnished all 
the mourning dresses worn by those who walked in the pro- 
cession, more than three hundred and fifty in number, paying 
the whole expense. 

The procession was composed of " poor women 
mourners to the number of one hundred," the nobil- 
ity, with their attendants, grooms of the chamber, 
Scots in cloaks, officers of the realm, and the corpse, 
borne by six esquires in cloaks. In the procession 
were borne the standard of Scotland, the great ban- 
ner, the helm, crest, target, sword, coat, etc., together 
with eight banneroles, and the canopy, of black velvet, 
fringed with gold, borne by four knights. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 423 

•' The body being thus brought into the quire, was set down 
within the royal hearse, which was twenty feet square, and 
twenty-seven feet in height, covered over with black velvet, 
and richly set with escutcheons of arms and fringe of gold ; 
upon the body, which was covered with a pall of black velvet, 
lay a purple velvet cushion, fringed and tasseled with gold, 
and upon the same a close crown of gold set with stones ; 
after the body was thus placed, and every mourner according 
to their degree, the sermon was begun by the Bishop of Lin- 
coln, after which certain anthems were sung by the choir, 
and the offering began very solemnly, as followeth : 

" The Offering. 

" First, the chief mourner offered for the queen, attended 
upon by all ladies. The coat, sword, target, and helme, was 
severally carried up by the two Earls of Rutland and Lincoln, 
one after another, and received by the Bishop of Peterborough, 
and Mr. Garter, king at arms. 

The standard alone. 

The great banner alone. 

The lady chief mourner alone. 

The trayne-bearer alone. 

The two earls together. 

The lord steward. The lord chamberlayne. 

The Bishop of Lincoln alone. 

The four lords assistants to the body. 

The treasurer, comptroller, and vioe-chamberlayne. 

The four knights that bore the canopy. 
" In which offeringe every course was led up by a herald, 
for the more order ; after which, the two bishops and the 
Dean of Peterborough came to the vault, and over the body 
began to read the funeral service : which being said, every 
officer broke his staff over his head, and threw the same into 
the vault to the body ; and so every one departed, as they 
came, after their degrees, to the bishop's palace, where was 
prepared a most royal feast, and a dole given unto the poor." 

Delivered from one cause of fear, Elizabeth was 
tormented with apprehensions of danger from the for- 
eign princes, whose protest she had scorned. Affect- 



424 MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 

ing ignorance of Mary's death, she despised and pun- 
ished the agents of her cruel work. She even de- 
nied either knowledge or approval of the execution. 
France heard with surprise and sadness of the event, 
and anathemas were thundered by the priesthood 
against the " English Jezebel." The king of Scot- 
land, in hot indignation, declared vengeance upon the 
slayer of his mother. The Queen wrote letters of 
explanation and conciliation. Philip II. seriously 
indulged the design of avenging Mary's death. The 
grand armada, and its destruction, were the fruits of 
his anger. Elizabeth, victorious over all enemies, 
advanced the grandeur and glory of England. When 
dying, March 24th, 1602, she was desired to declare 
her successor ; she replied, " Who but my kinsman, 
the King of Scots ? " She soon after expired, a 
learned, powerful, vain, haughty, violent, and dis- 
simulating sovereign. She sleeps beside her rival 
in "Westminster Abbey. 

Mary Stuart was born while her father, James V., 
was sinking with a fatal wound received in battle for 
the independence of Scotland. Around her cradle 
began the contest, whether a French alliance or the 
house of Tudor should prevail. .France for a while 
was triumphant, and gave to Mary all .the happiness 
she ever knew. She ascended the throne of Scotland, 
while the Reformation was rocking her native soil 
with earthquake violence. With the refinement and 
corruption of a dazzling court affecting her manners 
and feelings, and a witching beauty of person, she 
had no sympathy with either the customs or religion 
of her Protestant subjects. Gallantries made her ob- 
noxious to the contempt of the Puritans, and weak- 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 425 

ened her influence with the people. Unfortunate in 
her marriages, impulsive in her passions, ambitious 
in her aims, and a firm Catholic, she lost her crown 
at the hand of the Reformers, and imprudently threw 
herself upon the mercy of Elizabeth, whose successor 
she determined to be. Plots and conspiracies com- 
pleted her ruin, which unyielding rivalry sealed with 
blood. 

Mary Stuart was a charming woman in mind, dis- 
position, and conversation. But an impure breath 
soiled her young heart ; soaring aspirations lured her 
ever onward from one doubtful experiment to an- 
other; and adherence to an exclusive, persecuting 
faith, lent the delusive zeal of the fanatic to her re- 
ligious life. Her unfilial son attained to the honor 
she so ardently desired for him, and both have slept 
during the fierce commotions of centuries, in the mag- 
nificent tomb of kings. Both, with the imperious 
Elizabeth, have confronted a Judge who is no re- 
specter of persons, and renders to each immortal, 
righteous judgment. To the blind and to the im- 
partial admirer of Mary, there is alike a picture of 
female character, amid whose brilliant lines and 
gloomy shades there are touches of life's pencil, sug- 
gestive of chastening thoughts, and illustrative of the 
transcendent excellence of Christian purity and prin- 
ciple, which would have adorned and saved from pre- 
mature wreck, her genius, love and beauty. 



THE END. 



BURT'S HOME LIBRARY 



a 



Comprising four hundred and fourteen titles of 
standard works, embracing fiction, essays, poetry, 
history, travel, etc., selected from the world's best 
literature, written by authors of world-wide reputa- 
tion. Printed from large type on good paper, and 
bound in handsome uniform cloth binding. 



Uniform Cloth Binding. Gilt Tops. Price,, $1.00. 



Abb<* Constantin. By L. Halevy. 

Abbot. By Sir Walter Scott. 

<»dam Bede. By George Eliot. 

Aesop's Fables. 

Alhambra. Washington Irving. 

Alice in Wonderland, and Through 
the Looking Glass. By Lewis 
Carroll. 

Alice Lorraine. R. D. Blackmore. 

AH Sorts and Conditions of Men. 
By Besant and Rice. 

Amiel's Journal. Translated by 
Mrs. Humphrey Ward. 

Andersen's Fairy Tales. 

Anne of Geierstein. By Sir Wal- 
ter Scott. 

Antiquary. Sir Walter Scott. 

Arabian Nights' Entertainments. 

Ardath. By Marie Corelli. 

Armadale. By Wilkie Collins. 

Armorel of Lyonesse. W. Besant. 

Arnold's Poems. Matthew Arnold. 

Around the World in the Yacht 
Sunbeam. By Mrs. Brassey. 

Arundel Motto. Mary Cecil Hay. 

At the Back of the North Wind. 
By George Macdonald. 

Attic Philosopher. E. Souvestre. 

Auld Licht Idyls. J. M. Barrie. 

Aunt Diana. By Rosa N. Carey. 

Aurelian. By William Ware. 

Autobiography of B. Franklin. 

Autocrat of the Breakfast Table. 
By O. W. Holmes. 

Averil. By Rosa N. Carey. 

Bacon's Essays. Francis Bacon. 

Barbara Heathcote's Trial. Rosa 
N. Carey. 

Barnaby Rudge. Charles Dickens. 

Barrack-Room Ballads. Rudyard 
Kipling. 

Betrothed. Sir Walter Scott. 

Beulah. By Augusta J. Evans. 

Black Beauty. By Anna Sewell. 

Black Dwarf. Sir Walter Scott. 

Black Rock. By Ralph Connor. 

Bleak House. Charles Dickens. 

Bondman, The. By Hall Calne. 

Bride of Lammermoor. Sir Wal- 
ter Scott. 

Bride of the Nile, The. George 
Ebers. 

Browning's Poems. Elizabeth Bar- 
rett Browning. 

Browning's Poems. (Robert.) 

Bryant's Poems. W. C. Bryant. 

Burgomaster's Wife. Geo. Ebers. 

Burns' Poems. By Robert Burns. 

By Order of the King. V. Hugo. 

Byron's Poems. By Lord Byron. 

California and Oregon TralL By 
Francis Parkman, Jr. 




Carey's Poems. By Alice and 
Phoebe Carey. 

Cast Up by the Sea. By Sir Sam- 
uel Baker. 

Caxtons. Bulwer-Lytton. 

Chandos. By "Ouida." 

Charles Auchester. E. Berger. 

Character. By Samuel Smiles. 

Charles O'Malley. Charles Lever. 

Chevaxier de Maison Rouge. By 
Alexandre Dumas. 

Chicot the Jester. Ales. Dumas. 

Children of the Abbey. By Regina 
Maria Roche. 

Children of Gibeon. W. Besant. 

Child's History of England. By 
Charles Dickens 

Christmas Stories. Chas. Dickens. 

Clara VaughaD R. D. Blackmore. 

Cloister and the Hearth. Charles 
Reade. 

Coleridge's Poems. Samuel Taylor 
Coleridge. 

Complete Angler. Walton & Cot- 
ton. 

Confessions of an Opium Eater. 
By Thomas De Quincey. 

Conquest of Granada. Washing- 
ton Irving. 

Consuelo. By George Sand. 

Corinne ; By Madame De StaeL 

Countess de Charny. A. Dumas. 

Countess Gisela. E. Marlitt. 

Countess of Rudolstadt. By Geo. 
Sand. 

Count Robert of Paris. W. Scott. 

Courtship of Miles Standish. By 1 
H. W. Longfellow. 

Cousin Pons. By H. de Balzac. 

Cradock Nowell. By R. D. Black- 
more. 

Cranford. By Mrs. Gaskell. 

Cripps the Carrier. R. D. Black- 
more. 

Crown of Wild Olive. J. Ruskln. 

Daniel Deronda. George Eliot. 

Data of Ethics. H. Spencer. 

Daughter of an Empress. By 
Louisa Muhlbacb. 



BURT'S HOME MBR ART— Continued. Prfce SI. 00 per Copy. 



Daughter of Heth. Wm, Black. 

David Copperfleld. Chas. Dickens. 

Days of Bruce. Grace Aguilar. 

Deemster, The. By Hall Caiue. 

Deerslayer. By J. F. Cooper. 

Descent of Man. Charles Darwin. 

Dick Sand. By Jules Verne. 

Discourses of Epictetus. Trans- 
lated by George Long. 

Divine Comedy. (Dante.) Trans- 
lated by Rev. H. F. Carey. 

Dombey & Son. Charles Dickens, 

Donal Grant. Geo. Macdonald. 

Donovan. By Edna Lyall. 

Dora Deane. Mary J. Holmes. 

Dove in the Eagle's Nest. By 
Charlotte M. Yonge. 

Dream Life. By Ik MarveL 

Duty. By Samuel Smiles. 

Early Days of Christianity. By 
F. W. Farrar. 

East Lynne. Mrs. Henry Wood. 

Education. By Herbert Spencer. 

Egoist. By George Meredith. 

Egyptian Princess. Geo. Ebers. 

Eight Hundred Leagues on the 
Amazon. By Jules Verne. 

Eliot's Poems. By George Eliot. 

Emerson's Essays. (Complete.) 

Emerson's Poems. Ralph Waldo 
Emerson. 

Emperor, The. By George Ebers. 

English Orphans. M. J. Holmes. 

Essays of Elia. Charles Lamb. 

Esther. By Rosa N. Carey. 

Evangeline. H. W. Longfellow. 

Executor. Mrs. Alexander. 

Fair Maid of Perth. By Sir Wal- 
ter Scctt. 

Fairy Land of Science. By Ara- 
bella B. Buckley. 

Far From the Madding Crowd. By 
Thomas Hardy. 

faust. (Goethe.) Translated by 
Anna Swanwick. 

Felix Holt. By George Eliot. 

Fifteen Decisive Battles of the 
World. By E. S. Creasy. 

File No. 113. Emile Gaboriau. 

Firm of Girdlestone. By A. Conan 
Doyle. 

First Principles. H. Spencer. 

First Violin. Jessie Fothersrill. 

For Faith and Freedom. Walter 
Besant. 

Fortunes of Nigel. Walter Scott. 

Forty-Five Guardsmen. Alexandre 
Dumas. 

Fragments of Science. J. Tyndall. 

Frederick the Great and His 
Court. Louisa Muhlbach. 

French Revolution. T. Carlyle. 

From the Earth to the Moon. By 
Jules Verne. 

Goethe and Schiller. By Louisa 
Muhlbach. 

Gold Bug. By Edgar A. Poe. 

Gold Elsie. By E. Marlitt. 
Golden Treasury, The, Francis T. 
Palgrrava. 

Goldsmith's Poems. 

Good Luck. By E. Werner. 
Grandfather's Chair. Nathaniel 

Hawthorne. 
Gray's Poems. Thomas Gray. 



Great Expectations. By Dickens. 

Greek Heroes. Charles Kingsley. 

Green Mountain Boys, The. By 
D. P. Thompson. 

Grimm's Household Tales. 

Grimm's Popular Tales. 

Gulliver's Travels. Dean Swift. 

Guy Mannering. Walter Scott. 

Handy Andy. By Samuel Lovet. 

Hardy Norseman. Edna LyalL 

Harold. By Bulwer-Lytton. 

Harry Lorrequer. Charles Levet. 

Heart of Midlothian. By Scott. 

Heir of Redclyffe. By Charlotte 
M. Yonge. 

Hemans' Poems. By Mrs. Felicia 
Hemans. 

Henry Esmond. W. M. Thack- 
eray. 

Her Dearest Foe. Mrs. Alexan- 
der. 

Heriot's Choice. Rosa N. Carey. 

Heroes and Hero Worship. Thos 
Carlyle. 

Hiawatha. H. W. Longfellow. 

History of a Crime. Victor Hugo 

History of Civilization in Europ*. 
By Guizot. 

Holmes' Poems. O. W. Holmes. 

Holy Roman Empire. Jas. Brycr> 

Homo Sum. By George Ebers. 

Hood's Poems. Thomas Hood. 

House of the Seven Gables. &T 
Nathaniel Hawthorne. 

House of the Wolf. By Stanley 
J. Weyman. 

Hunchback of Notre Dame. Ey 
Victor Hugo. 

Hypatia. By Charles Kingsley. 

Iceland Fisherman. Pierre LotL 

Idle Thoughts of an Idle Fellow. 
By Jerome K. Jerome. 

Iliad, The. Pope's Translation, 

Ingelow's Poems. 

Initials. Baroness Tautphoeus. 

Intellectual Life. By Philip O. 
Hamerton. 

In the Counselor's House. By B 
Marlitt. 

In the Golden Days. Edna Lyall 

In the Schillingscourt. E. Mar- 
litt. 

It Is Never Too Late to Mend 
By Charles Reade. 

Ivanhoe. By Sir Walter Scott. 

Jack's Courtship. W. C. Russell 

Jack Hinton. By Charles Lever 

Jane Eyre. Charlotte BrontS. 

John Halifax. By Miss Mulock. 

Joshua. By George Ebers. 

Joseph Balsamo. Alex. Dumas. 

Keats' Poems. By John Keats. 
Kenilworth. By Sir Walter Scott ! 

Kidnapped. By R. L. Stevenson 

Kit and Kitty. R. D. Blackmore 

Knickerbocker's History of Ne* 
York. Washington Irving. 

Kith and Kin. Jessie FothergilL 

Knight Errant. By Edna LyalL 

Koran. Sale's Translation. 

Ladv of the Lake. Sir W. Scott. 
Lady with the Bubies. E. Marlitt. 
Lalla Rookiflk. Thomas Moore. 
Last Days of Pompeii. By Bui 
wer-Lyttoo. 



BURT'S HOME LIBRARY— Continued. Price SI. 00 per Copy, 

Lamplighter. Maria S. Cummins. 

Last of the Barons. Bulwer-Lyt- 
ton. 

Last of the Mohicans. By James 
Feniruore Cooper. 

Lay of the Last Minstrel. By Sir 
Walter Scott. 

Lena Rivers. Mary J. Holmes. 

Life of Christ. By F. W. Farrar. 

Light of Asia. Edwin Arnold. 

Light that Failed, The. Rudyard 
Kipling. 

Little Dorrit. Charles Dickens. 

Longfellow's Poems. (Early.) 

Lorna Doone. R. D. Blackmore. 

Louise de la Valliere. Alexandre 
Dumas. 

Love Me Little, Love Me Long. 
By Charles Reade. 

Lover or Friend. Rosa N. Carey. 

Lowell's Poems. (Early.) 

Lucile. By Owen Meredith. 

Macaulay's Poems. 

Maid of Sker. By R. D. Black- 
more. 

Makers of Florence. By Mrs. Oli- 
phant. 

Makers of Venice. By Mrs. Oli- 
phant. 

Man and Wife. Wilkie Collins. 

Man in Black. Stanley Weyman. 

Man in the Iron Mask. By Alex- 
andre Dumas. 

Marguerite de Valois. By Alex- 
andre Dumas. 

Marmion. Sir Walter Scott. 

Marquis of Lossie. George Mac- 
donald. 

Martin Chuzzlewit. By Charles 
Dickens. 

Mary Anerley. R. D. Blackmore. 

Mary St. John. Rosa N. Carey. 

Master of Ballantrae. By R. L. 
Stevenson. 

Masterman Ready . By Captain 
Marryat. 

Meadow Brook. Mary J. Holmes. 

Meditations of Marcus Aurelius. 
Translated by George Long. 

Memoirs of a Physician. Alexan- 
dre Dumas. 

Merle's Crusade. Rosa N. Carey. 

Micah Clarke. A. Conan Doyle. 

Michael Strogoff. Jules Verne. 

Middlemarch. By George Eliot. 

Midshipman Easy. By Captain 
Marryat. 

Mill on the Floss. George Eliot. 

Milton's Poems. 

Mine Own People. R. Kipling. 

Molly Bawn. "The Duchess. 

Monastery. Sir Walter Scott. 

Moonstone. By Wilkie Collins. 

Moore's Poems. Thomas Moore. 

Mosses from an Old Manse. By 
Nathaniel Hawthorne. 

Mysterious Island. Jules Verne. 

Natural Law in the Spiritual 
World. Henry Drummond. 

Nellie's Memories. Rosa N. Carey. 

Newcomes. By W. M. Thackeray. 

Nicholas Nickleby. Chas. Dickens. 

Ninety-Three. By Victor Hugo. 

Not Like Other Girls. By Rosa 
N. Carey. 



No Name. By Wilkie Collins. 
Odyssey. Pope's Translation. 
Old Curiosity Shop. By Charles 

Dickens. 
Old Mam'selle's Secret. By EL 

Marlitt. 
Old Mortality. Sir Walter Scott. 
Old Myddleton's Money. By Mary 

Cecil Hay. 
Oliver Twist. Charles Dickens. 
Only a Word. By George Ebers. 
Only the Governess. By Rosa N. 

Carey. 
On the Heights. B. Auerbach. 
Origin of Species. Chas. Darwin. 
Other Worlds than Ours. Richard 

Proctor. 
Our Bessie. By Rosa N. Carey. 
Our Mutual Friend. By CharleE 

Dickens. 
Pair of Blue Eyes. Thos. Hardy, 
Past and Present. Thos. Carlyle. 
Pathfinder. James F. Cooper. 
Pendennis. W. M. Thackeray. 
Pe t -e Goriot. H. de Balzac. 
Peveril of the Peak. By Sir Wal- 
ter Scott. 
Phantom Rickshaw, The. Rud« 

yard Kipling. 
Phra, The Phoenician. By Edwin 

L. Arnold. 
Picciola. By X. B. Saintine. 
Pickwick Papers. Chas. Dickens. 
Pilgrim's Progress. John Bunyan. 
Pillar of Fire. By Rev. J. H. 

Ingraham. 
Pilot, The. By James F. Cooper. 
Pioneers. By James F. Cooper. 
Pirate. By Sir Walter Scott. 
Plain Tales from the Hills. By 

Rndyard Kipling. 
Poe's Poems. By Edgar A. Poe. 
Pope's Poems. Alexander Pope. 
Prairie. By James F. Cooper. 
Pride and Prejudice. Jane Austen. 
Prince of the House of David, 

By Rev. J. H. Ingraham. 
Princess of the Moor. E. Marlitt. 
Princess of Thule. Wm. Black. 
Procter's Poems. By Adelaide 

Procter. 
Professor. Charlotte BrontS. 
Prue and I. By Geo. Wm. Curtis. 
Queen Horteuse. Louisa Muhl- 

bach. 
Queenie's Whim. Rosa N. Carey< 
Queen's Necklace. Alex. Dumas. 
Quentin Durward. Walter Scott. 
Redgauntlet. Sir Walter Scott. 
Red Rover. By James F. Cooper* 
Reign of Law. Duke of Argyle. 
Reveries of a Bachelor. By Ik 

Marvel. 
Reynard the Fox. Joseph Jacobs. 
Rhoda Fleming. By George Mer- 
edith. 
RIenzi. By Bulwer-Lytton. 
Robert Old's Atonement. By Rosa 

N. Carey. 
Robinson Crusoe. Daniel Defoe. 
Rob Roy. By Sir Walter Scott. 
Romance of Two Worlds. Marie 

Corelli. 
Romola. By George Ellot- 
Rory O'More. By Samuel Lover. 



BURT'S HOSrE LIBRARY -Continued. Price 151.00 per Copy. 



Rossettl's Poems. Gabriel Dante 

Rossetti. 
Royal Edinburgh. Mrs. Oliphant. 
Saint Michael. By E. Werner. 
Schonberg-Cotta Family. By Mrs. 

Andrew Charles. 
Sartor Resartus. Thos. Carlyle. 
Scarlet Letter, The. Nathaniel 

Hawthorne. 
Schopenhauer's Essays. Trans- 
lated by T. B. Saunders. 
Scottish Chiefs. By Jane Porter. 
Scott's Poems. Walter Scott. 
Search for Basil Lyndhurst. By 

Rosa N. Carey. 
Second Wife. By E. Marlitt. 
Seekers after God. F. W. Farrar. 
Self-Help. By Samuel Smiles. 
Sense and Sensibility. By Jane 

Austen. 
Sesame and Lilies. John Ruskin. 
Seven Lamps of Architecture. By 

John Ruskin. 
Shadow of a Crime. Hall Caine. 
Shelley's Poems. 
Shirley. By Charlotte BrontS. 
Sign of the Four, The. By A. 

Conan Doyle. 
Silas Marner. By George Eliot. 
Silence of Dean Maitland. By 

Maxwell Grey. 
Sin of Joost Avelingh. Maarten 

Maartens. 
Sir Gibbie. George Macdonald. 
Sketch Book. Washington Irving. 
Social Departure, A. By Sarah 

Jeannette Duncan. 
Soldiers Three. Rudyard Kipling. 
Son of Hagar. By Hall Caine. 
Springhaven. R. D. Blackmore. 
Spy, The. By James F. Cooper. 
Story of an African Farm. By 

Olive Schreiner. 
Story of John G. Paton. By Rev. 

Jas. Paton. 
Strathmore. By "Ouida." 
St. Ronan's Well. Walter Scott. 
Study in Scarlet, A. By A. Conan 

Doyle. 
Surgeon's Daughter. By Sir Wal- 
ter Scott. 
Swinburne's Poems. 
Swiss Family Robinson. By Jean 

Rudolph Wyss. 
Taking the Bastile. Alex. Dumafc. 
Tale of Two Cities. By Charles 

Dickens. 
Tales from Shakespeare. Charles 

and Mary Lamb. 
Tales of a Traveller. By Wash- 
ington Irvinsr. 
Talisman. Sir Walter Scott. 
Tanglewood Tales. By Nathaniel 

Hawthorne. 
Tempest and Sunshine. By Mary 

J. Holmes. 
Ten Nights in a Bar Room. By 

T. S. Arthur. 
Tennyson's Poems. 
Ten Years Later. Alex. Dumas. 
Terrible Temptation. By Charles 

Reade. 
Thaddeus of Warsaw. By Jane 

Porter. 
Tbelma, By Marie CorellL 



Thirty Years' War. By Frederick 

Schiller. 
Thousand Miles Dp the Nile. By 

Amelia B. Edwards. 
Three Guardsmen. Alex. Dumas. 
Three Men in a Boat. By J. K. 

Jerome. 
Thrift. By Samuel Smiles. 
Toilers of the Sea. Victor Hugo. 
Tom Brown at Oxford. By Thos. 

Hughes. 
Tom Brown's School Days. By 

Thomas Hughes. 
Tom Burke of "Ours." By Chas. 

Lever. 
Tour of the World in Eighty* 

Days. By Jules Verne. 
Treasure Island. By R. Louis 

Stevenson. 
Twenty Thousand Leagues Under 

the Sea. By Jules Verne. 
Twenty Years After. By Alex- 
andre Dumas. 
Twice Told Tales. By Nathaniel 

Hawthorne. 
Two Admirals. J. F. Cooper. 
Two Years Before the Mast. By 

R. H. Dana, Jr. 
Uarda. By George Ebers. 
Uncle Max. By Rosa N. Carey. 
Uncle Tom's Cabin. By Harriet 

Beecher Stowe. 
Under Two Flags. "Ouida." 
Undine. De La Motte Fouqae. 
Unity of Nature. By Duke of 

Argyle. 
Vanity Fair. W. M. Thackeray. 
Vendetta. By Marie Corelli. 
Vicar of Wakefield. By Oliver 

Goldsmith. 
Vicomte de Bragelonne. Alexan- 
dre Dumas. 
Villette. By Charlotte Bronte. 
Virginians. W. M. Thackeray. 
Water Babies. Charles Kingsle.v. 
Water Witch. James F. Cooper. 
Waverley. By Sir Walter Scott. 
Wee Wifie. By Rosa N. Carey. 
Westward Ho! Charles Kingsley. 
We Two. By Edna LyalL 
What's Mine's Mine. By George 

Macdonald. 
When a Man's Single. By J. M. 

Barrie. 
White Company. By A. Doyle. 
Whittier's Poems. 
Wide, Wide World. By Susao 

Warner. 
Window in Thrums. J. M. Barrie* 
Wing and Wing. J. F. Cooper. 
Woman in White. Wilkie Collins* 
Won by Waiting. Edna Lyall. 
Wonder Book, A. For Boys and 

Girls. By N. Hawthorne. 
Woodstock. By Sir Walter Scott. 
Wooed and Married. By Rosa N. 

Carey. 
Wooing O't. By Mrs. Alexander. 
Wordsworth's Poems. 
World Went Very Well then. By 

Walter BesaDt. 
Wormwood. By Marie Corelli. 
Wreck of the Grosvenor. By W. 

Clark Russell. 
Zenobia. By William Ware. 



JUN 8 1903 



||iimmiiiiiiiimmmmmiiiiiimimiii!iiiiiiii!ii|| 

LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 



021 390 580 6 

























;il;|l;l!|:j|l|5;- 




























II 



